Abstract
BackgroundAnopheles calderoni was first recognized in Colombia in 2010 as this species had been misidentified as Anopheles punctimacula due to morphological similarities. An. calderoni is considered a malaria vector in Peru and has been found naturally infected with Plasmodium falciparum in Colombia. However, its biting behaviour, population dynamics and epidemiological importance have not been well described for Colombia.MethodsTo assess the contribution of An. calderoni to malaria transmission and its human biting behaviour and spatial/temporal distribution in the southwest of Colombia, human landing catches (HLC) and larval collections were carried out in a cross-sectional, entomological study in 22 localities between 2011 and 2012, and a longitudinal study was performed in the Boca de Prieta locality in Olaya Herrera municipality between July 2012 and June 2013. All mosquitoes determined as An. calderoni were tested by ELISA to establish infection with Plasmodium spp.ResultsLarvae of An. calderoni were found in four localities in 12 out of 244 breeding sites inspected. An. calderoni adults were collected in 14 out of 22 localities during the cross-sectional study and represented 41.3% (459 of 1,111) of the collected adult specimens. Other species found were Anopheles albimanus (54.7%), Anopheles apicimacula (2.1%), Anopheles neivai (1.7%), and Anopheles argyritarsis (0.2%). In the localities that reported the highest malaria Annual Parasite Index (>10/1,000 inhabitants) during the year of sampling, An. calderoni was the predominant species (>90% of the specimens collected). In the longitudinal study, 1,528 An. calderoni were collected by HLC with highest biting rates in February, May and June 2013, periods of high precipitation. In general, the species showed a preference to bite outdoors (p < 0.001). In Boca de Prieta, two specimens of An. calderoni were ELISA positive for Plasmodium circumsporozoite protein: one for P. falciparum and one for Plasmodium vivax VK-210. This represents an overall sporozoite rate of 0.1% and an annual entomological inoculation rate of 2.84 infective bites/human/year.ConclusionsThis study shows that An. calderoni is a primary malaria vector in the southwest of Colombia. Its observed preference for outdoor biting is a major challenge for malaria control.
Highlights
Anopheles calderoni was first recognized in Colombia in 2010 as this species had been misidentified as Anopheles punctimacula due to morphological similarities
In Colombia, Gonzalez and Carrejo [6] included this species in the taxonomy key for the determination of Anopheles of Colombia with distribution data based on the review of several sources including samples from the Malaria Eradication Programme placed in the Entomological Museum collection of the Universidad del Valle (MUSENUV) and new Orjuela et al Malar J (2015) 14:256 specimens collected by Gonzalez and Carrejo during 10 years preceding the publication of the taxonomic key [6]
González et al [5] examined museum specimens from the Universidad del Valle using morphological character analysis of isofamilies. This combined with deoxiribonucleic acid (DNA) sequence analysis of the second internal transcribed spacer (ITS2) and mtDNA cytochrome C oxidase subunit I gene (COI) barcodes (658 bp of the COI gene) showed that An. calderoni was present in 12 Colombian States
Summary
Anopheles calderoni was first recognized in Colombia in 2010 as this species had been misidentified as Anopheles punctimacula due to morphological similarities. An. calderoni is considered a malaria vector in Peru and has been found naturally infected with Plasmodium falciparum in Colombia. Its biting behaviour, population dynamics and epidemiological importance have not been well described for Colombia. Anopheles calderoni is a member of the Arribalzagia Series, which was described for the first time from material obtained from females captured in Salitral This demonstrated that An. calderoni had been misidentified as Anopheles punctimacula due to similarities in the adult female characteristics of these two species and because the most common morphological keys for Anopheles determination used in Colombia [7, 8] did not include An. calderoni [9]
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