A GROUP of researchers have developed a way to keep pesky mosquitoes away.

They have developed a patch that makes humans invisible to mosquitoes.

The patch - which can be worn on clothing - blocks mosquitoes ability to detect carbon dioxide - their primary mode of tracking down their next meal.

It also blocks mosquitoes ability to track people for up to 48 hours.

Naturally this new product will come in handy during hot summers outdoors, but it will also designed to reduce the instances of malaria and other mosquito-borne viruses such as Dengue Fever and the West Nile Virus.

Kite Patch from SPARKHOUSE on Vimeo.

The patch was conceived at the University of California but was developed in conjunction with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the US National Institutes of Health.

The researchers behind the project crowd-funded the patch on the Kickstarter website and they surpassed their goal of $75,000 in just four days.

The campaign has 37 days left but it has already raised almost $159,000.

media_camera Kite test

Don’t throw away your mosquito repellent just yet. Unfortunately, the product is not yet available to buy. It still needs to gain approval for sale in the US (and the rest of the world).

The researchers are now pushing to meet a second goal of $175,000 to help expand and enhance field tests in Uganda, improve their manufacturing process and develop the cost-effectiveness of the project.



Click here to donate to Kite's Kickstarter campaign.

media_camera Kite Africa

Originally published as Invention makes you 'invisible' to mozzies