An innovative graphene-based film helps shield people from disease-carrying mosquitos, according to a new study funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health. The research, conducted by the Brown University Superfund Research Center, Providence, Rhode Island, is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Researchers found dry graphene film seemed to interfere with mosquitos’ ability to sense skin and sweat because they did not land and try to bite. When they looked closely at videos taken of the mosquitos in action, they noticed the insects landed much less frequently on graphene than on bare skin. The graphene film also provided a strong barrier that mosquitos could not bite through, although when wet it did not stop mosquitos from landing on skin.
Mosquitos threaten public health by carrying infectious viruses such as Yellow Fever, West Nile, and Zika, leading to disability and death for millions of people every year.
Results show that graphene, a tight, honeycomb lattice of carbon, could be an alternative to chemicals now used in mosquito repellants and protective clothing. Until this study, insect-bite protection was an unexplored function of graphene-based materials.
Several years ago, Hurt began devising suits with graphene to protect workers against hazardous chemicals at environmental clean-up sites. He pointed out a wealth of literature demonstrates graphene’s impermeable qualities. Graphene is invisible to the unaided eye, yet harder than diamonds, stronger than steel, and more conductive than copper. Since its discovery in 2004, graphene has been used for a variety of barrier and filtration purposes.
