Abstract
BackgroundHost choice and feeding success of sand fly vectors of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) are important factors in understanding the epidemiology and for developing efficient control strategies. The aim of the present study was to determine the host preference of Phlebotomus orientalis in the VL focus of Tahtay Adiyabo district, northern Ethiopia.MethodsTwo separate experiments were conducted testing attraction of P. orientalis to humans, domestic animals, and small wild animals. The host choice of P. orientalis and other sand fly species was assessed using tent traps baited with seven different animals (human, cow, sheep, goat, donkey, dog and chicken) and a blank control. Baited traps were rotated every night in a Latin square design for two consecutive full rounds totaling 16 trap-nights. The second set of experiments tested attraction to small wild animals including; ground squirrel (Xerus rutilus), hare (Lepus sp.), gerbil (Tatera robusta) and spiny mouse (Acomys cahirinus). Animals were caged in standard rodent traps or cylindrical wire-mesh cages. The bait animals were placed in agricultural field and the attracted sand flies were collected using unlit CDC traps for 10 trapping nights. Sand fly specimens collected from each of the experiments were identified to species level and counted.ResultsSignificant difference (P < 0.05) was observed in the attraction and feeding rate of P. orientalis to different baits. In the first experiment, cow-baited tent traps attracted the highest mean number of P. orientalis (mean = 510 flies). The engorgement rate of P. orientalis on donkey was the highest followed by cow, and much lower on goat, sheep, dog and chicken. In the case of smaller wild animals, more numbers of P. orientalis females were attracted to squirrels followed by hares, gerbils and the spiny rat. However, the engorgement rates for P. orientalis in the smaller animals were very low (1.08%) compared with larger domestic animals (30.53%).ConclusionThe tendency of female P. orientalis to engorge in large numbers on certain species of domestic as well as wild animals strongly indicated that the species is primarily zoophilic in its host preference with feeding habits that may vary depending on the availability of hosts.
Highlights
Host choice and feeding success of sand fly vectors of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) are important factors in understanding the epidemiology and for developing efficient control strategies
In Ethiopia, VL caused by Leishmania donovani, is considered an emerging disease with an estimated incidence of 3,700 to 7,400 cases per year [2]
Recently increasing numbers of VL has been reported from previously non-endemic regions such as Libo Kemkem district of Amhara Regional State and Tahtay Adiyabo district in Tigray Regional State in Northern Ethiopia [5,6]
Summary
Host choice and feeding success of sand fly vectors of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) are important factors in understanding the epidemiology and for developing efficient control strategies. The aim of the present study was to determine the host preference of Phlebotomus orientalis in the VL focus of Tahtay Adiyabo district, northern Ethiopia. Ninety-eight countries and 3 territories on 5 continents are endemic for either of the two major forms of leishmaniasis: cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL), a disfiguring and stigmatizing disease, and visceral leishmaniasis (VL) or kala-azar, which is fatal if untreated [1,2]. Recently increasing numbers of VL has been reported from previously non-endemic regions such as Libo Kemkem district of Amhara Regional State and Tahtay Adiyabo district in Tigray Regional State in Northern Ethiopia [5,6]. The various forms of leishmaniasis, including VL are transmitted by the bite of infected female sand flies of the genus Phlebotomus in the Old World and Lutzomyia in the New World [7,8]. In southern Ethiopia and Kenya, the principal vector is P. martini which breeds and rests in termite mounds [9,10], whereas in northern Ethiopia and eastern Sudan, P. orientalis is implicated as the vector inhabiting Acacia forests and cracking vertisols [11,12,13]
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