Abstract
BackgroundImproved surveillance techniques are required to accelerate efforts against major arthropod-borne diseases such as malaria, dengue, filariasis, Zika and yellow-fever. Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are increasingly used in mosquito traps because they improve energy efficiency and battery longevity relative to incandescent bulbs. This study evaluated the efficacy of a new ultraviolet LED trap (Mosclean) against standard mosquito collection methods.MethodsThe study was conducted in controlled semi-field settings and in field conditions in rural south-eastern Tanzania. The Mosclean trap was compared to commonly used techniques, namely CDC-light traps, human landing catches (HLCs), BG-Sentinel traps and Suna traps.ResultsWhen simultaneously placed inside the same semi-field chamber, the Mosclean trap caught twice as many Anopheles arabiensis as the CDC-light trap, and equal numbers to HLCs. Similar results were obtained when traps were tested individually in the chambers. Under field settings, Mosclean traps caught equal numbers of An. arabiensis and twice as many Culex mosquitoes as CDC-light traps. It was also better at trapping malaria vectors compared to both Suna and BG-Sentinel traps, and was more efficient in collecting mosquitoes indoors than outdoors. The majority of An. arabiensis females caught by Mosclean traps were parous (63.6%) and inseminated (89.8%). In comparison, the females caught by CDC-light traps were 43.9% parous and 92.8% inseminated.ConclusionsThe UV LED trap (Mosclean trap) was efficacious for sampling Anopheles and Culex mosquitoes. Its efficacy was comparable to and in some instances better than traps commonly used for vector surveillance. The Mosclean trap was more productive in sampling mosquitoes indoors compared to outdoors. The trap can be used indoors near human-occupied nets, or outdoors, in which case additional CO2 improves catches. We conclude that this trap may have potential for mosquito surveillance. However, we recommend additional field tests to validate these findings in multiple settings and to assess the potential of LEDs to attract non-target organisms, especially outdoors.
Highlights
Improved surveillance techniques are required to accelerate efforts against major arthropod-borne diseases such as malaria, dengue, filariasis, Zika and yellow-fever
When placed simultaneously inside the semi-field chambers on the same nights, the Mosclean trap caught twice as many An. arabiensis mosquitoes as the CDC-light trap [relative rates (RR) and 95% CI: 2.1 (0.97–4.56)], the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.059)
The main target was the malaria vector An. arabiensis, the field tests revealed moderate to high efficiencies against other mosquito species
Summary
Improved surveillance techniques are required to accelerate efforts against major arthropod-borne diseases such as malaria, dengue, filariasis, Zika and yellow-fever. The World Health Organization, through its Global Technical Strategy for Malaria Elimination (GTS) [1] and Global Vector Control Response initiative (GVCR) [2], has called for strengthening and integration of surveillance as a core component of strategies against mosquitoborne diseases. To operationalize this agenda, endemic countries need low-cost and scalable monitoring tools, as well as a simplified set of indicators for surveillance. A major setback for many of the existing techniques is poor scalability due to their physical structure and cost
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