Mosquitoes as pesticide disseminators: Advancing pyriproxyfen-based technologies for next-generation vector control

Mosquito-borne diseases, including dengue, Zika, chikungunya, and malaria, pose significant global health challenges, exacerbated by rising insecticide resistance in key vectors like Aedes and Anopheles. Pyriproxyfen (PPF), an insect growth regulator (IGR), offers a promising alternative due to its unique mode of action, mimicking juvenile hormone to disrupt mosquito metamorphosis and reproduction at low concentrations, with minimal mammalian toxicity. This review examines PPF's role in mosquito control, focusing on its mechanisms, conventional applications, novel dissemination strategies, and challenges in the context of escalating resistance, with particular emphasis on PPF-based novel mosquito control technologies, namely the PPF-dissemination stations (PDS) and boosted sterile or incompatible insect techniques (BSIT/BIIT). These advanced technologies leverage mosquitoes to spread PPF to breeding sites (including the cryptic ones), offering targeted and cost-effective solutions. We propose that future research should prioritize the refinement of PPF delivery systems, improvement of community engagement, assessment of PPF's effects on vector competence, and establishment of international collaborative networks for PPF-resistance monitoring. This review highlights the significant value of PPF in combating mosquito-borne diseases, emphasizing the need for continued innovation to ensure its role as a valuable complement of global vector control initiatives, especially in regions prone to resistance.