Life in a contaminant milieu: PPCP mixtures generate unpredictable outcomes across trophic levels and life stagest

Nearly all aquatic ecosystems are affected by sublethal levels of anthropogenic chemical contamination, but other agents of large�scale anthropogenic disruption of ecosystems have received more attention. Consequently, ecologists do not fully appreciate how sublethal contaminant exposure affects ecosystems. Sublethal contaminants can affect ecological systems directly via their impacts on an organism's fitness or indirectly by changing the strengths of species interactions. This study investigated how an emerging class of contaminants—pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs)—influences food webs by affecting the biology of organisms and by interfering with predator–prey interactions. Specifically, we investigated how three common PPCPs—caffeine, DEET (N, N�diethyl�meta�toluamide), and triclosan—affect the strength of the interaction between a common mosquito predator (i.e., mosquito fish) and mosquito larvae as well as how these PPCPS affect mosquito survival, life history traits, and oviposition site choices. We found that all three PPCPs, individually and combined as a mixture, reduced predator consumption rates. Relative to a contaminant�free control, the presence of predator cues reduced mosquito oviposition and larval abundance for all PPCP treatments except for DEET. Predator cues reduced mosquito adult emergence across PPCP treatments; however, mosquitoes that were exposed to caffeine did not emerge as adults even in the absence of predator cues. This study shows that the effects of PPCPs are diverse and can interact with mosquitoes and their predators in ways that cannot be predicted by their individual effects. In a contaminated world, ecologists need to better understand how sublethal concentrations of ubiquitous, biologically active pollutants might challenge what we think we know about how ecological systems function.Joyner Open Access Publishing Support Fun

Host Feeding Patterns of Culex Mosquitoes and West Nile Virus Transmission, Northeastern United States

Culex salinarius is a bridge vector to humans, while Cx. pipiens and Cx. restuans are more efficient enzootic vectors

Risks of dengue secondary infective biting associated with aedes aegypti in home environments in Monterrey, Mexico

Abstract. Secondary dengue virus infections are a major risk for developing dengue hemorrhagic fever. Recent exposure to infectious bites of Aedes aegypti (L.) females in previously diagnosed dengue cases fulfills the epidemiological model of dengue hemorrhagic fever. A study was comprised of 357 (89.2%) dengue and 43 (10.8%) dengue hemorrhagic fever cases confirmed by laboratory tests and clinical manifestations. An entomological survey was done in homes and backyards. Concurrently, a questionnaire was used to assess the impact of healthpromotion campaigns through knowledge of the vector and its epidemiological role. Seventy-six (28.4%) of the 268 (67.0%) total wet or dry oviposition sites were positive for the presence of larvae or pupae, while adult Ae. aegypti were found in 32 (8.0%). One hundred thirty-two (33%) householders who formerly had dengue fever or dengue hemorrhagic fever had knowledge of either larval or adult dengue vector stages. According to gender distribution, 145 (36.2%) and 14 (3.5%) of the males confirmed with cases of dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever lived in houses with 17.9 and 2% of the Ae. aegypti larval and pupal habitats. Houses with females who had dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever were 212 (53%) and 29 (7.3%), with containers with immature Ae. aegypti in 19.4 and 7%, respectively. Lack of sustainability of government-targeted health education campaigns is the major problem for involving communities in prevention and control of dengu

Co-circulation of West Nile virus and distinct insect-specific flaviviruses in Turkey

Background: Active vector surveillance provides an efficient tool for monitoring the presence or spread of emerging or re-emerging vector-borne viruses. This study was undertaken to investigate the circulation of flaviviruses. Mosquitoes were collected from 58 locations in 10 provinces across the Aegean, Thrace and Mediterranean Anatolian regions of Turkey in 2014 and 2015. Following morphological identification, mosquitoes were pooled and screened by nested and real-time PCR assays. Detected viruses were further characterised by sequencing. Positive pools were inoculated onto cell lines for virus isolation. Next generation sequencing was employed for genomic characterisation of the isolates. Results: A total of 12,711 mosquito specimens representing 15 species were screened in 594 pools. Eleven pools (2%) were reactive in the virus screening assays. Sequencing revealed West Nile virus (WNV) in one Culex pipiens (s.l.) pool from Thrace. WNV sequence corresponded to lineage one clade 1a but clustered distinctly from the Turkish prototype isolate. In 10 pools, insect-specific flaviviruses were characterised as Culex theileri flavivirus in 5 pools of Culex theileri and one pool of Cx. pipiens (s.l.), Ochlerotatus caspius flavivirus in two pools of Aedes (Ochlerotatus) caspius, Flavivirus AV-2011 in one pool of Culiseta annulata, and an undetermined flavivirus in one pool of Uranotaenia unguiculata from the Aegean and Thrace regions. DNA forms or integration of the detected insect-specific flaviviruses were not observed. A virus strain, tentatively named as “Ochlerotatus caspius flavivirus Turkey”, was isolated from an Ae. caspius pool in C6/36 cells. The viral genome comprised 10,370 nucleotides with a putative polyprotein of 3,385 amino acids that follows the canonical flavivirus polyprotein organisation. Sequence comparisons and phylogenetic analyses revealed the close relationship of this strain with Ochlerotatus caspius flavivirus from Portugal and Hanko virus from Finland. Several conserved structural and amino acid motifs were identified. Conclusions: We identified WNV and several distinct insect-specific flaviviruses during an extensive biosurveillance study of mosquitoes in various regions of Turkey in 2014 and 2015. Ongoing circulation of WNV is revealed, with an unprecedented genetic diversity. A probable replicating form of an insect flavivirus identified only in DNA form was detected

Distribution of mosquitoes in the South East of Argentina and first report on the analysis based on 18S rDNA and COI sequences

Although Mar del Plata is the most important city on the Atlantic coast of Argentina, mosquitoes inhabiting such area are almost uncharacterized. To increase our knowledge in their distribution, we sampled specimens of natural populations. After the morphological identification based on taxonomic keys, sequences of DNA from small ribosomal subunit (18S rDNA) and cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) genes were obtained from native species and the phylogenetic analysis of these sequences were done. Fourteen species from the genera Uranotaenia, Culex, Ochlerotatus and Psorophora were found and identified. Our 18S rDNA and COI-based analysis indicates the relationships among groups at the supra-species level in concordance with mosquito taxonomy. The introduction and spread of vectors and diseases carried by them are not known in Mar del Plata, but some of the species found in this study were reported as pathogen vectors

The dominant Anopheles vectors of human malaria in the Asia-Pacific region: occurrence data, distribution maps and bionomic précis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The final article in a series of three publications examining the global distribution of 41 dominant vector species (DVS) of malaria is presented here. The first publication examined the DVS from the Americas, with the second covering those species present in Africa, Europe and the Middle East. Here we discuss the 19 DVS of the Asian-Pacific region. This region experiences a high diversity of vector species, many occurring sympatrically, which, combined with the occurrence of a high number of species complexes and suspected species complexes, and behavioural plasticity of many of these major vectors, adds a level of entomological complexity not comparable elsewhere globally. To try and untangle the intricacy of the vectors of this region and to increase the effectiveness of vector control interventions, an understanding of the contemporary distribution of each species, combined with a synthesis of the current knowledge of their behaviour and ecology is needed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Expert opinion (EO) range maps, created with the most up-to-date expert knowledge of each DVS distribution, were combined with a contemporary database of occurrence data and a suite of open access, environmental and climatic variables. Using the Boosted Regression Tree (BRT) modelling method, distribution maps of each DVS were produced. The occurrence data were abstracted from the formal, published literature, plus other relevant sources, resulting in the collation of DVS occurrence at 10116 locations across 31 countries, of which 8853 were successfully geo-referenced and 7430 were resolved to spatial areas that could be included in the BRT model. A detailed summary of the information on the bionomics of each species and species complex is also presented.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This article concludes a project aimed to establish the contemporary global distribution of the DVS of malaria. The three articles produced are intended as a detailed reference for scientists continuing research into the aspects of taxonomy, biology and ecology relevant to species-specific vector control. This research is particularly relevant to help unravel the complicated taxonomic status, ecology and epidemiology of the vectors of the Asia-Pacific region. All the occurrence data, predictive maps and EO-shape files generated during the production of these publications will be made available in the public domain. We hope that this will encourage data sharing to improve future iterations of the distribution maps.</p

DESCRIPTIONS OF THE PUPAE OF SIX SPECIES OF ARMIGERES THEOBALD, SUBGENUS LEICESTERIA THEOBALD (DIPTERA: CULICIDAE) FROM NEPAL

Volume: 100Start Page: 234End Page: 24

Description of the pupae of five species in the subgenus Armigeres, genus Armigeres Theobald, with a key to species of the known pupae of the subgenus (Diptera: Culicidae)

Volume: 102Start Page: 108End Page: 11