After 70 years of targeted and sustained action, taking cases down from 30 million to zero, China has been awarded a malaria-free certification by the World Health Organization. 

Malaria had been an epidemic in the country for around 3,000 years but over the past few decades scientists have worked with different government sectors to control and finally eliminate all indigenous cases. So how did they do it – and could this be replicated in other countries?

Also in this episode of RAZOR, could malaria worldwide be ended by genetic modification?

With more than 3,500 species of mosquitoes, including 40 that can carry malaria, scientists are thinking about radical solutions to tackle the disease. At London's Imperial College, scientists have completed the first ever successful sex-distorter gene drive to control the growing natural mosquito population and help to eliminate malaria. 

To do this, they are modifying mosquitoes to produce more male offspring, eventually leading to no females being born and a total collapse in the population.The team's modification has already applied to Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes, the main malaria vector in sub-Saharan Africa.

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