Molecular Attraction: EU backed, nature based approaches to mosquito control

On World Malaria Day 2025, the European Innovation Council highlighted Molecular Attraction, a Sweden based biotechnology company that is translating university research into semiochemical based tools for mosquito control. The company coordinates the SemioMVC project supported through the EIC Accelerator Blended Finance mechanism. Molecular Attraction promotes patented chemical blends that mimic biological signals used by mosquitoes and other vectors as an alternative to conventional insecticides.

What the company claims and how it positions its innovation

Molecular Attraction frames its work around a simple proposition. Instead of relying on increasingly compromised insecticides or on destructive habitat modification, the company seeks to use nature to control nature. Its portfolio includes pheromones, stimulants and attractants that are designed to lure or disrupt behaviour in target mosquito species. On its website the company highlights products described as durable, maintenance free and low cost and shows video footage of mosquitoes responding to a mosquito specific stimulant that the company says mimics feeding on blood.

Recognition and scientific credentials

Molecular Attraction’s profile has risen in recent years through a mix of awards and academic pedigree. The company was included in the Norrsken Impact 100 list of most promising impact startups. In November 2024, Assoc Prof Noushin Emami, the company’s cofounder and chief scientific officer, was named one of Sweden’s top scientists by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences. The EIC communications emphasise that the company’s work stems from high end research at Stockholm University and related laboratories.

Context and why the approach matters

Vector borne disease control remains one of global public health's highest return interventions. Conventional tools such as insecticide treated nets and indoor residual spraying have saved millions of lives but their effectiveness is under pressure. Insecticide resistance in mosquito populations is well documented. Climate change and land use patterns are expected to expand the geographic range of some mosquito species which some modelling studies indicate could place hundreds of millions more people at risk by the end of the century. Nature based, behaviour altering tools are attractive because they can be more targeted and theoretically have smaller environmental footprints than broad spectrum insecticides.

What still needs to be demonstrated

There are several practical and evidentiary gaps that must be addressed before semiochemical tools can move from promising prototypes to widely adopted public health interventions. Independent, peer reviewed field trials are needed to quantify reductions in mosquito populations and, crucially, reductions in disease transmission. The operational durability of formulations in hot and humid climates must be shown. Regulatory approval pathways differ by country and by product class. Integration into existing national vector control programmes will require cost effectiveness data and procurement pathways. Finally, potential non target effects and ecological impacts need assessment.

Implications for funders and public health actors

The EIC Accelerator can accelerate early market readiness and de risk certain aspects of scale up. However funders and public health agencies should require transparent data from independent field studies and operational pilots in representative settings. Donors and national programmes must also weigh the opportunity costs and determine how new tools fit into integrated vector management strategies. For innovations originating in Europe, equitable partnership models will be important to ensure priorities of endemic countries shape testing and deployment.

Concluding assessment

Molecular Attraction demonstrates a credible research to enterprise path. The company benefits from academic credentials and early stage recognition. The technology concept is plausible and aligns with global calls for new, insecticide free tools. That said the leap from lab success to public health impact is substantial. Recognition on lists and national awards is helpful for visibility but does not replace independent efficacy data, regulatory clearances and proven delivery models in endemic settings. The next 12 to 36 months will be decisive for demonstrating whether semiochemical based products can complement or replace parts of the current vector control toolkit.

Additional information Molecular Attraction is an EIC Accelerator Blended Finance beneficiary building on research originating in Stockholm University and aiming to deploy nature powered solutions for communities affected by mosquito borne diseases. The EIC article directs readers to CORDIS for more details. A disclaimer notes the EIC story is for knowledge sharing and does not express the official view of the European Commission.