Epidemiology and Infection
Volume 125, Issue 1, 2000, Pages 207-212

Transmission of the nocturnal periodic strain of Wuchereria bancrofti by Culex quinquefasciatus: Establishing the potential for urban filariasis in Thailand (Article)

Triteeraprapab S.* , Kanjanopas K. , Suwannadabba S. , Sangprakarn S. , Poovorawan Y. , Scott A.L.
  • a Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
  • b Filariasis Division, CDC, Ministry of Public Health, Bangkok, Thailand
  • c Filariasis Division, CDC, Ministry of Public Health, Bangkok, Thailand
  • d Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
  • e Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
  • f Johns Hopkins University, School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, United States

Abstract

Control programmes have reduced the prevalence of Bancroftian filariasis in Thailand to low levels. Recently, there has been an influx of more than one million Myanmar immigrants into urban centres of Thailand. The prevalence of patent Wuchereria bancrofti infection in these immigrants (2-5%) has prompted concern in the public health community that the potential now exists for a re-emergence of Bancroftian filariasis in Thailand. It is possible that an urban cycle of transmission could become established. The Myanmar immigrants are infected with the nocturnal periodic (urban) type W. bancrofti for which Culex quinquefasciatus serves as the main vector. The Thai strains of Cx. quinquefasciatus have never been reported to transmit Bancroftian filariasis. Our results of feeding experiments demonstrated that the Thai Cx. quinquefasciatus are permissive for the development of Myanmar W. bancrofti to infective third-stage larvae thus establishing the potential for establishing an urban cycle of transmission in Thailand. We also adapted the SspI repeat PCR assay for the identification of infective mosquitoes that was capable of detecting a single infective stage larvae in a pool of 100 mosquitoes.

Author Keywords

[No Keywords available]

Index Keywords

filariasis urban area immigrant Thailand Population Surveillance human Insect Vectors diethylcarbamazine Larva mosquito controlled study disease carrier Animals Urban Health Humans Adolescent male female Myanmar polymerase chain reaction prevalence Article disease transmission adult human experiment Emigration and Immigration Wuchereria bancrofti Culex microfilariasis DNA, Helminth Circadian Rhythm Culex quinquefasciatus DNA Primers
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-0033778210&doi=10.1017%2fS0950268899004355&partnerID=40&md5=5b2c72018a96facaa779a4592ce8f628
DOI: 10.1017/S0950268899004355
ISSN: 09502688
Cited by: 35
Original Language: English