Health agent examines blood from possibly malaria-infected gold seekers. Malaria, a mosquito-borne infectious disease is endemic in this region around Agua Branca gold mining village in Para State, Brazil. The disease results from the multiplication of malaria parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases progressing to coma, and death. Malaria transmission can be reduced by preventing mosquito bites by distribution of inexpensive mosquito nets and insect repellents, or by mosquito-control measures such as spraying insecticides inside houses or by pulverizing it in the village streets and draining standing water where mosquitoes lay their eggs.