bims-mosdis Biomed News
on Mosquito distribution and disease
Issue of 2023–06–18
ten papers selected by
Richard Halfpenny, Staffordshire University
  1. Susceptibility of Aedes albopictus, Ae. aegypti and human populations to Ross River virus in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
  2. Genomic signatures of local adaptation in recent invasive Aedes aegypti populations in California.
  3. Spatial and temporal analyses of the influences of meteorological and environmental factors on Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) population dynamics during the peak abundance period at a city scale.
  4. Spatio-temporal patterns of malaria in Nepal from 2005 to 2018: A country progressing towards malaria elimination.
  5. Towards malaria elimination: analysis of travel history and case forecasting using the SARIMA model in Limpopo Province.
  6. Awareness on mosquito borne diseases among urban & rural population in Northern Gujarat.
  7. An overview of the National West Nile Virus Surveillance System in Canada: A One Health approach.
  8. Previous Dengue Infection among Children in Puerto Rico and Implications for Dengue Vaccine Implementation.
  9. Utilization of insecticide-treated nets and associated factors among childbearing women in Northern Nigeria.
  10. Universal coverage and utilization of free long-lasting insecticidal nets for malaria prevention in Ghana: a cross-sectional study.
  1. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2023 Jun 12. 17(6): e0011423
    Susceptibility of Aedes albopictus, Ae. aegypti and human populations to Ross River virus in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
    Jolene Yin Ling Fu, Chong Long Chua, Athirah Shafiqah Abu Bakar, Indra Vythilingam, Wan Yusoff Wan Sulaiman, Luke Alphey, Yoke Fun Chan, I-Ching Sam.
       BACKGROUND: Emerging arboviruses such as chikungunya and Zika viruses have unexpectedly caused widespread outbreaks in tropical and subtropical regions recently. Ross River virus (RRV) is endemic in Australia and has epidemic potential. In Malaysia, Aedes mosquitoes are abundant and drive dengue and chikungunya outbreaks. We assessed risk of an RRV outbreak in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia by determining vector competence of local Aedes mosquitoes and local seroprevalence as a proxy of human population susceptibility.
    METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We assessed oral susceptibility of Malaysian Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus by real-time PCR to an Australian RRV strain SW2089. Replication kinetics in midgut, head and saliva were determined at 3 and 10 days post-infection (dpi). With a 3 log10 PFU/ml blood meal, infection rate was higher in Ae. albopictus (60%) than Ae. aegypti (15%; p<0.05). Despite similar infection rates at 5 and 7 log10 PFU/ml blood meals, Ae. albopictus had significantly higher viral loads and required a significantly lower median oral infectious dose (2.7 log10 PFU/ml) than Ae. aegypti (4.2 log10 PFU/ml). Ae. albopictus showed higher vector competence, with higher viral loads in heads and saliva, and higher transmission rate (RRV present in saliva) of 100% at 10 dpi, than Ae. aegypti (41%). Ae. aegypti demonstrated greater barriers at either midgut escape or salivary gland infection, and salivary gland escape. We then assessed seropositivity against RRV among 240 Kuala Lumpur inpatients using plaque reduction neutralization, and found a low rate of 0.8%.
    CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Both Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus are susceptible to RRV, but Ae. albopictus displays greater vector competence. Extensive travel links with Australia, abundant Aedes vectors, and low population immunity places Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at risk of an imported RRV outbreak. Surveillance and increased diagnostic awareness and capacity are imperative to prevent establishment of new arboviruses in Malaysia.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0011423
  2. BMC Genomics. 2023 Jun 10. 24(1): 311
    Genomic signatures of local adaptation in recent invasive Aedes aegypti populations in California.
    Shaghayegh Soudi, Marc Crepeau, Travis C Collier, Yoosook Lee, Anthony J Cornel, Gregory C Lanzaro.
       BACKGROUND: Rapid adaptation to new environments can facilitate species invasions and range expansions. Understanding the mechanisms of adaptation used by invasive disease vectors in new regions has key implications for mitigating the prevalence and spread of vector-borne disease, although they remain relatively unexplored.
    RESULTS: Here, we integrate whole-genome sequencing data from 96 Aedes aegypti mosquitoes collected from various sites in southern and central California with 25 annual topo-climate variables to investigate genome-wide signals of local adaptation among populations. Patterns of population structure, as inferred using principal components and admixture analysis, were consistent with three genetic clusters. Using various landscape genomics approaches, which all remove the confounding effects of shared ancestry on correlations between genetic and environmental variation, we identified 112 genes showing strong signals of local environmental adaptation associated with one or more topo-climate factors. Some of them have known effects in climate adaptation, such as heat-shock proteins, which shows selective sweep and recent positive selection acting on these genomic regions.
    CONCLUSIONS: Our results provide a genome wide perspective on the distribution of adaptive loci and lay the foundation for future work to understand how environmental adaptation in Ae. aegypti impacts the arboviral disease landscape and how such adaptation could help or hinder efforts at population control.
    Keywords:  Adaptive loci; Aedes mosquitoes; Genome scan; Landscape genomics; Selection
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-023-09402-5
  3. Acta Trop. 2023 Jun 10. pii: S0001-706X(23)00151-1. [Epub ahead of print]245 106964
    Spatial and temporal analyses of the influences of meteorological and environmental factors on Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) population dynamics during the peak abundance period at a city scale.
    Fei Wang, Yiyi Zhu, Hengduan Zhang, Junhua Fan, Peien Leng, Ji Zhou, Shenjun Yao, Dandan Yang, Yao Liu, Jingjing Wang, Juanyi Yao, Yibin Zhou, Tongyan Zhao.
      Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) is a major vector of multiple diseases. While vaccines have been developed, preventing these Aedes-borne diseases continues to primarily depend on monitoring and controlling the vector population. Despite increasing research on the impacts of various factors on Ae. albopictus population dynamics, there is still no consensus on how meteorological or environmental factors affect vector distribution. In this study, the relationships between mosquito abundance and meteorological and environmental indicators were examined at the town level based on data collected from July to September, the peak abundance period of 2019 in Shanghai. In addition to performing Poisson regression, we employed the geographically weighted Poisson regression model to account for spatial dependency and heterogeneity. The result showed that the environmental factors (notably human population density, the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), socioeconomic deprivation, and road density) had more significant impacts than the meteorological variables in accounting for the spatial variation of mosquito abundance at a city scale. The dominant environmental variable differed in urban and rural places. Furthermore, our findings indicated that deprived townships are more susceptible to higher vector densities compared to non-deprived townships. Therefore, it is crucial not only to allocate more resources but also to increase attention towards controlling the vectors responsible for their transmission in these townships.
    Keywords:  Aedes albopictus, Geographically weighted Poisson regression, Spatial analysis; Dengue fever, Mosquito, Meteorological factors, environmental factors
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actatropica.2023.106964
  4. Spat Spatiotemporal Epidemiol. 2023 Jun;pii: S1877-5845(23)00013-8. [Epub ahead of print]45 100576
    Spatio-temporal patterns of malaria in Nepal from 2005 to 2018: A country progressing towards malaria elimination.
    Shreejana Bhattarai, Jason K Blackburn, Sarah L McKune, Sadie J Ryan.
      Nepal aims to eliminate malaria by 2026. This study analyzed district-level spatio-temporal patterns of malaria in Nepal from 2005 to 2018, following the introduction of Long-Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) for vector control intervention. The spatial variation in a temporal trend (SVTT) method in SaTScan was used to detect significantly high or low temporal trends of five malaria indicators: Indigenous, Imported, PV (Plasmodium vivax), PF (Plasmodium falciparum), and Total Malaria; results were mapped as clusters with associated trends. Spatial clusters of increasing malaria were found for all five indicators. Indigenous Malaria increased 113.71% in a cluster of three previously non-endemic mountainous districts. The most prominent cluster of Imported Malaria increased by 156.22%, and included the capital, Kathmandu. While some clusters had decreasing malaria, the rate of decrease in clusters was lower than outside the clusters. Overall, malaria burden is decreasing in Nepal as the country progresses closer to the elimination deadline. However, spatial clusters of increasing malaria, and clusters of lower rates of decreasing malaria, point to a need to focus vector control interventions on these clusters.
    Keywords:  Control intervention; Malaria elimination; Nepal; Spatial variation; Spatio-temporal pattern; Temporal trend
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sste.2023.100576
  5. Parasitol Res. 2023 Jun 13.
    Towards malaria elimination: analysis of travel history and case forecasting using the SARIMA model in Limpopo Province.
    Olukunle O Oyegoke, Taiye S Adewumi, Samuel A Aderoju, Ntimbane Tsundzukani, Eric Mabunda, Matthew A Adeleke, Rajendra Maharaj, Moses Okpeku.
      Despite various efforts and policy implementation aimed at controlling and eliminating malaria, imported malaria remains a major factor posing challenges in places that have made progress in malaria elimination. The persistence of malaria in Limpopo Province has largely been attributed to imported cases, thus reducing the pace of achieving the malaria-free target by 2025. Data from the Limpopo Malaria Surveillance Database System (2010-2020) was analyzed, and a seasonal auto-regressive integrated moving average (SARIMA) model was developed to forecast malaria incidence based on the incidence data's temporal autocorrelation. The study found that out of 57,288 people that were tested, 51,819 (90.5%) cases were local while 5469 (9.5%) cases were imported. Mozambique (44.9%), Zimbabwe (35.7%), and Ethiopia (8.5%) were the highest contributors of imported cases. The month of January recorded the highest incidence of cases while the least was in August. Analysis of the yearly figures showed an increasing trend and seasonal variation of recorded malaria cases. The SARIMA (3,1,1) X (3,1,0) [12] model used in predicting expected malaria case incidences for three consecutive years showed a decline in malaria incidences. The study demonstrated that imported malaria accounted for 9.5% of all cases. There is a need to re-focus on health education campaigns on malaria prevention methods and strengthening of indoor residual spray programs. Bodies collaborating toward malaria elimination in the Southern Africa region need to ensure a practical delivery of the objectives.
    Keywords:  Imported malaria; South Africa; Surveillance; Travel history
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-023-07870-y
  6. Bioinformation. 2022 ;18(7): 640-644
    Awareness on mosquito borne diseases among urban & rural population in Northern Gujarat.
    B Mahalakshmi, N Sivasubramanian, Payal Vaghela, Patel Divyankakumari Navinbhai, Patel Hetal Vasanthbhai, G Ramalakshmi, Gurav Priyanka Rajeshbhai, K J Shaijo.
      It is of interest to examine the awareness and precautions of urban and rural residents on a number of mosquito-borne diseases (MBD). A sample of 300 adult people (Rural 150+Urban 150) was selected from Mahesana district of North Gujarat. Majority of samples (47.3 %) had average, 16% poor and 36.7% had good level of awareness in urban areas. In rural areas majority of the samples (40.67%) had average, 28%poor and 31.33% had good level of awareness. (67.3%) urban population were using mosquito repellent liquids and creams and (68.6%) of rural population were using mosquito net. Data shows that both urban and rural populations have moderate awareness on Mosquito Borne Diseases and majority is taking precaution towards these conditions. Data also revealed that there is no significant difference between urban & rural population's precaution measures against Mosquito borne diseases.
    Keywords:  Awareness; Comparison; Mosquito Borne Diseases; Precaution
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.6026/97320630018640
  7. Can Commun Dis Rep. 2022 May 05. 48(5): 181-187
    An overview of the National West Nile Virus Surveillance System in Canada: A One Health approach.
    Dobrila Todoric, Linda Vrbova, Maria Elizabeth Mitri, Salima Gasmi, Angelica Stewart, Sandra Connors, Hui Zheng, Annie-Claude Bourgeois, Michael Drebot, Julie Paré, Marnie Zimmer, Peter Buck.
      National West Nile virus (WNV) surveillance was established in partnership with the federal, provincial and territorial governments starting in 2000, with the aim to monitor the emergence and subsequent spread of WNV disease in Canada. As the disease emerged, national WNV surveillance continued to focus on early detection of WNV disease outbreaks in different parts of the country. In Canada, the WNV transmission season occurs from May to November. During the season, the system adopts a One Health approach to collect, integrate, analyze and disseminate national surveillance data on human, mosquito, bird and other animal cases. Weekly and annual reports are available to the public, provincial/territorial health authorities, and other federal partners to provide an ongoing national overview of WNV infections in Canada. While national surveillance allows a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction comparison of data, it also helps to guide appropriate disease prevention strategies such as education and awareness campaigns at the national level. This paper aims to describe both the establishment and the current structure of national WNV surveillance in Canada.
    Keywords:  Canada; One Health; West Nile virus; epidemiology; surveillance
  8. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2023 Jun 12. pii: tpmd230091. [Epub ahead of print]
    Previous Dengue Infection among Children in Puerto Rico and Implications for Dengue Vaccine Implementation.
    Laura E Adams, Matt D T Hitchings, Freddy A Medina, Dania M Rodriguez, Liliana Sánchez-González, Hannah Moore, Stephen S Whitehead, Jorge L Muñoz-Jordán, Vanessa Rivera-Amill, Gabriela Paz-Bailey.
      Limited dengue virus (DENV) seroprevalence estimates are available for Puerto Rico, which are needed to inform the potential use and cost-effectiveness of DENV vaccines. The Communities Organized to Prevent Arboviruses (COPA) is a cohort study initiated in 2018 in Ponce, Puerto Rico, to assess arboviral disease risk and provide a platform to evaluate interventions. We recruited participants from households in 38 study clusters, who were interviewed and provided a serum specimen. Specimens from 713 children aged 1 to 16 years during the first year of COPA were tested for the four DENV serotypes and ZIKV using a focus reduction neutralization assay. We assessed the seroprevalence of DENV and ZIKV by age and developed a catalytic model from seroprevalence and dengue surveillance data to estimate the force of infection for DENV during 2003-2018. Overall, 37% (n = 267) were seropositive for DENV; seroprevalence was 9% (11/128) among children aged 1 to 8 years and 44% (256/585) among children aged 9 to 16 years, exceeding the threshold over which DENV vaccination is deemed cost-effective. A total of 33% were seropositive for ZIKV, including 15% among children aged 0 to 8 years and 37% among children aged 9 to 16 years. The highest force of infection occurred in 2007, 2010, and 2012-2013, with low levels of transmission from 2016 to 2018. A higher proportion of children had evidence of multitypic DENV infection than expected, suggesting high heterogeneity in DENV risk in this setting.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.23-0091
  9. Malar J. 2023 Jun 16. 22(1): 184
    Utilization of insecticide-treated nets and associated factors among childbearing women in Northern Nigeria.
    Bola Lukman Solanke, Daniel Alabi Soladoye, Ibrahim Adamu Birsirka, Anifat Abdurraheem, Omowumi Romoke Salau.
       BACKGROUND: Studies have explored the correlates of insecticide-treated nets in Nigeria. The few studies that focused on Northern Nigeria mostly examined individual correlates, but largely ignored the community correlates. Also, the persistence of armed insurgencies in the region calls for more research attention. This study examines the utilization and the associated individual and community factors of insecticide-treated nets in Northern Nigeria.
    METHODS: The study adopted a cross-sectional design. Data were extracted from the 2021 Nigeria Malaria Indicator Survey (NMIS). A weighted sample size of 6873 women was analysed. The outcome variable was the utilization of insecticide-treated nets. The explanatory variables selected at the individual/household level were maternal age, maternal education, parity, religion, sex of head of household, household wealth, and household size. The variables selected at the community level were the type of place of residence, geo-political zone of residence, the proportion of children under five who slept under a bed net, the proportion of women aged 15-49 who heard malaria media messages, and the community literacy level. Two variables, namely, the number of mosquito bed nets in the household, and the number of rooms used for sleeping were included for statistical control. Three multilevel mixed-effect regression models were fitted.
    RESULTS: The majority of childbearing women (71.8%) utilized insecticide-treated nets. Parity and household size were the significant individual/household characteristics associated with the utilization of insecticide-treated nets. The proportion of under-five children in the community who slept under mosquito bed nets, and the geopolitical zone of residence were significant community correlates of the use of insecticide-treated nets. In addition, the number of rooms for sleeping, and the number of mosquito bed nets in the households were significantly associated with the utilization of insecticide-treated nets.
    CONCLUSION: Parity, household size, number of sleeping rooms, number of treated bed nets, geo-political zone of residence, and proportion of under-five children sleeping under bed nets are important associated factors of the utilization of insecticide-treated nets in Northern Nigeria. Existing malaria preventive initiatives should be strengthened to target these characteristics.
    Keywords:  Insecticide-treated nets; Malaria transmission; Mosquito bed net; Northern Nigeria
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1186/s12936-023-04620-4
  10. Front Public Health. 2023 ;11 1140604
    Universal coverage and utilization of free long-lasting insecticidal nets for malaria prevention in Ghana: a cross-sectional study.
    Seth Kwaku Afagbedzi, Yakubu Alhassan, Ernest Kenu, Keziah Malm, Delia Akosua Benewaah Bandoh, Nana Yaw Peprah, Otubea Owusu Ansah, Chris Guure.
       Background: Malaria continues to be one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity, especially among children and pregnant women. The use of Long-Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLINs) has been recognized and prioritized as a major intervention for malaria prevention in Ghana. This study aims to establish the factors influencing the universal coverage and utilization of LLINs in Ghana.
    Methods: The data used for this study was from a cross-sectional survey carried out to assess LLINs ownership and use in 9 out of the 10 old regions of Ghana from October 2018 to February 2019 where free LLIN distribution interventions were implemented. The EPI "30 × 7" cluster sampling method (three-stage sampling design) was modified to "15 × 14" and used for the study. A total of 9,977 households were interviewed from 42 districts. Descriptive statistics using percentages as well as tests of associations such as Pearson Chi-square and the magnitude of the associations using simple and multivariable logistic regression were implemented.
    Results: Of the 9,977 households in the study, 88.0% of them owned at least one LLIN, universal coverage was 75.6%, while utilization was 65.6% among households with at least one LLIN. In the rural and urban areas, 90.8% and 83.2% of households, respectively, owned at least one LLIN. The was a 44% increase in universal coverage of LLINs in rural areas compared to urban areas (AOR: 1.44, 95% CI: 1.02-2.02). There were 29 higher odds of households being universally covered if they received LLIN from the PMD (AOR: 29.43, 95% CI: 24.21-35.79). Households with under-five children were 40% more likely to utilize LLIN (AOR: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.26-1.56). Respondents with universal coverage of LLIN had 25% increased odds of using nets (AOR: 1.25 95% CI: 1.06-1.48). Rural dwelling influences LLIN utilization, thus there was about 4-fold increase in household utilization of LLINs in rural areas compared to urban areas (AOR: 3.78, 95% CI: 2.73-5.24). Household size of more than 2 has high odds of LLINs utilization and awareness of the benefit of LLINs (AOR: 1.42, 95% CI: 1.18-1.71).
    Conclusion: About nine in 10 households in Ghana have access at least to one LLIN, three-quarters had universal coverage, and over two-thirds of households with access used LLIN. The predictors of universal coverage included region of residence, rural dwellers, and PMD campaign, while households with child under-five, in rural areas, and with universal coverage were positively associated with utilization.
    Keywords:  long-lasting insecticide nets; malaria prevention; mosquito nets; point mass distribution; universal coverage; utilization of insecticidal nets
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1140604
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