VIDEO - Combatting malaria with a new mosquito repellent

Vanderbilt University researchers are working to unleash an insect repellent on mosquitoes that's more powerful than DEET, which could one day be effective in reducing the spread of mosquito-borne diseases, like malaria. It's based on a mosquito's sense of smell. With early support from the National Science Foundation, Vanderbilt University biologist Laurence Zwiebel researched which mosquito genes are linked to odor reception and has since discovered a separate odor sensor on a mosquito's antennae. The new insect repellent compound takes advantage of his discovery by overwhelming the mosquito's odor sensors, thus scaring them away.