A Review of Agricultural Pesticides Use and the Selection for Resistance to Insecticides in Malaria Vectors

Most national malaria control programmes rely extensively on pyrethroid insecticides to control mosquito vectors of this disease. Unfortunately, the intensive use of this class of insecticides both in public health and agriculture has led to its reduced efficacy. The objective of this review was to assess the role of agricultural pesticides use on the development of resistance to insecticides in malaria vectors and the potential impact of this resistance on control activities. We searched library catalogues and public databases for studies that included data on resistance to the major classes of insecticides: organochlorines, carbamates, organophosphates and pyrethroids, in the malaria vectors of Anopheles genera. There is a strong geographical bias in published studies many originating from West African countries. Several studies demonstrate that resistance to pyrethroids is widespread in the major malaria vectors of the Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles funestus complexes. Assessing the impact of insecticide resistance on vector control is complicated owing to the lack of studies into the epidemiological consequences of resistance on the control of malaria and other vector borne diseases.