Xeroshield was formed in 2005 at the Roslin BioCentre, a few miles south of Edinburgh. The founder, Bruce Alexander, was born and educated locally but had spent most of his career working in the New World Tropics, carrying out research on the transmission of insect-borne diseases.

Much of this work was field-based, involving regular communication with communities affected by insect-borne diseases such as leishmaniasis, malaria and dengue. This allowed Bruce to gain an appreciation fo the fact that disease transmission involves a host of factors, most of this information being unavailable to laboratory-based researchers. These include ecological conditions, agricultural practices, local knowledge and beliefs and geographical, historical and political constraints on the measures that can be used to control a public health problem in a particular area. On his return to the UK, Bruce decided to set up a company whose ethos was based on the following premises:

• Conventional chemical insecticides do not offer the only answer to pest control problems and better solutions may be available, often based on greater knowledge of the pest's behaviour and local conditions. Most conventional chemicals are toxic to man and other non-target organisms. They should only be applied by people who have received adequate training, using the correct equipment. They may be costly and their use may lead to other problems, such as the appearance of resistance mechanisms among mosquitoes exposed as larvae to pesticide run-off from agricultural land.
• Insect control measures should be sustainable as possible and are likely to work better with the collaboration of human populations directly affected by the pest problem. The degree of collaboration may range from informed acquiescence to active participation. In any case, local people should always be aware of what measures are being used and the risks involved.
• Local knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding an insect pest problem should always be taken into account. They may provide novel insights into solving the problem and developing new measures. Even when erroneous, these beliefs will have to be overcome if the chosen method is to be adopted by the local communities.
• Working with people from as wide a range of disciplines as possible may also provide new insights and expertise invaluable in the development of new methods of insect pest control. Furthermore, these people may raise questions that researchers working in the field would avoid asking because they conflict with current dogma.

Xeroshield's all-important first grant was obtained from Scotland Unlimited in 2005. This allowed the company to become incorporated and rent premises at the Roslin BioCentre. Shortly afterwards we were accepted onto the EPIS programme, where we received valuable advice and guidance on all aspects of setting up a business. Our first scientific collaboration was with the Centre for Technical Textiles and its spin-off company (NIRI) at Leeds University, with whom we received a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a new textiel for use in mosquito nets. Our most recent collaboration is with Dryden Aqua Ltd., a local company dealing with all aspects of water puriification and the prevention of waterborne diseases.