Abstract
BackgroundAnopheles funestus is among the major malaria vectors in Kenya and sub-Saharan Africa and has been recently implicated in persistent malaria transmission. However, its ecology and genetic diversity remain poorly understood in Kenya.MethodsUsing 16 microsatellite loci, we examined the genetic structure of An. funestus sampled from 11 locations (n = 426 individuals) across a wide geographical range in Kenya spanning coastal, western and Rift Valley areas.ResultsKenyan An. funestus resolved as three genetically distinct clusters. The largest cluster (FUN1) broadly included samples from western and Rift Valley areas of Kenya with two clusters identified from coastal Kenya (FUN2 and FUN3), not previously reported. Geographical distance had no effect on population differentiation of An. funestus. We found a significant variation in the mean Plasmodium infectivity between the clusters (χ2 = 12.1, df = 2, P = 0.002) and proportional to the malaria prevalence in the different risk zones of Kenya. Notably, there was variation in estimated effective population sizes between the clusters, suggesting possible differential impact of anti-vector interventions in represented areas.ConclusionsHeterogeneity among Kenyan populations of An. funestus will impact malaria vector control with practical implications for the development of gene-drive technologies. The difference in Plasmodium infectivity and effective population size between the clusters could suggest potential variation in phenotypic characteristics relating to competence or insecticide resistance. This is worth examining in future studies.
Highlights
Anopheles funestus is among the major malaria vectors in Kenya and sub-Saharan Africa and has been recently implicated in persistent malaria transmission
We made a total of 1320 pairwise comparisons for linkage disequilibrium (LD) of which 84 (7%) were significant (P < 0.005)
We found variation in mean Plasmodium infectivity between the An. funestus clusters proportional to the mean malaria prevalence across risk areas of Kenya
Summary
Anopheles funestus is among the major malaria vectors in Kenya and sub-Saharan Africa and has been recently implicated in persistent malaria transmission. Heterogeneity within vector populations could impact on spatio-temporal trends in malaria parasite transmission [5, 6] This underscores the need to characterize the genetic structure of key vectors at a Anopheles funesus (s.s.) (hereinafter referred to as Anopheles funestus) is one of the four major malaria vector species widely distributed throughout tropical Africa and a key vector in Kenya [8, 9]. Its potential capacity for rapid evolutionary adaptation is seen in the exhibition of divergent traits in response to scale up of long-lasting insecticidal net (LLIN) distribution These include a shift toward diurnal [12] and outdoor feeding [13] habits, and development of multiple insecticide resistance mechanisms [14]. These biological and phenotypic traits relevant to disease epidemiology can
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