Dar es Salaam. Two Tanzanian scientists from the Ifakara Health Institute (IHI), Paul Mrosso and Gloria Salome Shirima, have won the 2025 American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) Young Investigator Award in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Their research focused on developing methods to improve the breeding success of Anopheles funestus mosquitoes in specialised insectaries and on testing new mosquito nets to control malaria in Tanzania.
The duo bring the total number of Tanzanian recipients of this prestigious award to four, including Issa Mshani, who won in 2023, and IHI’s Lead Scientist and a lecturer at the University of Glasgow, Prof Fredros Okumu, who received the inaugural award 15 years ago.
The awards were presented on Tuesday, 11 November 2025, during the ASTMH annual meeting, which began on 9 November and is scheduled to conclude on 13 November.
Mrosso, a PhD student at the University of Glasgow, focused on optimising laboratory conditions to increase breeding success for Anopheles funestus, one of the most dangerous malaria vectors in Africa.
“Anopheles funestus is highly efficient at transmitting malaria but extremely difficult to breed in laboratories, which has limited scientific understanding of its behaviour and biology,” Mrosso said.
Through his research, he improved light conditions in insectaries, significantly increasing breeding success and enabling better study of this critical species.
Shirima, a PhD student in Switzerland, investigated new mosquito nets combining two insecticides, chlorfenapyr and alpha-cypermethrin, to create longer-lasting and more effective protection.
Using computer simulations, she assessed different distribution strategies, showing the nets prevent more malaria cases than conventional or PBO-treated nets, with effects lasting up to three years.
The award recognises researchers who independently lead studies and present their findings before an international panel of judges, demonstrating originality, leadership, and scientific impact.
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