Abstract
In an urban setting, it is a difficult task to collect adult Anopheles stephensi, unlike the immature stages, due to various reasons. A longitudinal study was undertaken from January 2016 to April 2017, with CDC light traps to collect adult Anopheles stephensi and other mosquito species in houses located in a few slums of Chennai, India. A total of 203 trap collections were made indoors from human dwellings having different roof types, as well as outdoors. Three to four trap collections were made at night (18:00 to 06:00 h) once a week. Overall, Culex quinquefasciatus (64%) was the predominant mosquito species captured, followed by An. stephensi (24%). In 98 of the 203 trap collections (48.3%), at least one female An. stephensi was trapped. In all, 224 female An. stephensi were trapped, of which the majority were collected during monsoon and winter seasons. Compared to outdoors, 10% more An. stephensi, the majority of them unfed, were collected indoors, with relatively more contribution coming from asbestos-roofed houses (71.4%), followed by thatched-roof houses (47.3%). Overall, 2.2% positivity for Plasmodium vivax was detected in An. stephensi through Circumsporozoite-ELISA. Binary logistic regression model indicated that season (winter and monsoon), asbestos-roofed dwelling, lesser number of rooms in a house, and more members in a family were significant predictor variables for the odds of trapping an An. stephensi. The study brought out significant factors associated with the presence of An. stephensi in urban slums setting in Chennai, where malaria is declining. The findings would help in devising targeted, effective vector control interventions for malaria elimination in urban settings.
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The dataset generated during and/or analyzed during the current study shall be available on request by contacting the corresponding author mentioning the purpose.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the National Institute of Malaria Research and the Indian Council of Medical Research for providing the necessary facilities and support. We gratefully acknowledge Dr. Amit Sharma (Director, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research), Dr. Neena Valecha (Former Director, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research), Dr. Jane Carlton from New York University, USA, Dr. Matthew B Thomas, and Dr. Jacqui Montgomery from Penn State University for their valuable suggestions/support; the staff of the NIMR field unit, Chennai; technical staff of regional office for Health and Family Welfare (Govt. of India) at Besant Nagar, Chennai; the communities of Besant Nagar for permitting us to carry out the study in their premises.
Funding
The fieldwork was supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Grant U19AI089676. The content of this manuscript is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.
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Alex Eapen designed the experiment with input from Manu Thomas Mathai and Vasna Joshua. Alex Eapen, N A Johnson Amala Justin, Aswin Asokan, and Sangamithra Ravishankaran participated in the study design. Sangamithra Ravishankaran, Shalu Thomas, and Alex Eapen wrote the manuscript. N A Johnson Amala Justin and Aswin Asokan conducted the experiment at the study site. Vasna Joshua, Sangamithra Ravishankaran, Aswin Asokan, and Shalu Thomas contributed to data analysis. Alex Eapen, Sangamithra Ravishankaran, Vasna Joshua, and Manu Thomas Mathai edited the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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The manuscript does not involve the use of any animal data or tissue. However, institutional ethical clearance of the project was obtained from the National Institute of Malaria Research of the Indian Council of Medical Research, New Delhi (ECR/NIMR/EC/2010/100).
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Ravishankaran, S., Asokan, A., Justin, N.A.J.A. et al. Does the roof type of a house influence the presence of adult Anopheles stephensi, urban malaria vector? – evidence from a few slum settings in Chennai, India. Parasitol Res 121, 105–114 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-021-07376-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-021-07376-5