Mozzie wars: The new non-toxic patch – no more smelly roll on, electric racquets

Mosquitos are one of the world's deadliest creatures, and any initiative to prevent malaria should be cheered. About 3.2 billion people are at risk, with 438 000 deaths recorded in 2015. And in this week's innovation corner Coolfidence's Brendan Jack looks at a nifty patch, which was part-funded by the Gates Foundation, to help keep them away – and it does so without the use of toxic chemicals. The Kite Mosquito Patch is not yet market ready so smelly roll on, citronella candles, nets and electric racquets still have a place in society for the time being, and mozzies get to fight another day. – Stuart Lowman

by Brendan Jack

Summer in the southern hemisphere means cooking over the coals, warm evenings and scratching incessantly at mosquito bites. Besides being irritating, mosquitoes also kill nearly half a million people a year.

Developed at the University of California, Riverside, and co-funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Kite research team found that certain chemical compounds inhibit carbon dioxide receptors in mosquitoes, who target us when alerted to our exhalation of carbon dioxide.

The sticker-like Kite Patch will keep mosquitoes at bay for up to 48 hours, without the use of toxic chemicals found in many other repellents on the market. The patch emits FDA-approved compounds that block a mosquito's ability to sense humans. Much like Harry Potter's invisibility cloak, or smearing zombie innards on yourself to keep zombies away in The Walking Dead.

With malaria ranked in the top 10 causes of worldwide deaths in low- and middle-income countries, this could be a break-through in fighting the spread of the disease. It should also work for world travellers, or just those not wanting to be pestered by mosquitoes while having a cognac on a hotel viewing deck.

The Kite Patch is set to be market-ready in 2017.