Her chosen poison was oestrogen, one of the hormones that make women women and help to control the menstrual cycle.

ECONOMIST: Human contraceptives are bad for fish

The curious life cycle of the parasite, called plasmodium, is one of the reasons why the disease has proved so difficult to control.

BBC: Venom to arm mosquito against malaria

But there's precedent for such an approach, since the antiretroviral drugs that now control HIV infections are used in combination to hit the virus at more than one point in its life cycle.

CNN: Possible step toward AIDS vaccine development