We present a genome assembly from an individual female (the malaria mosquito; Arthropoda; Insecta; Diptera; Culicidae) from Lopé, Gabon. The genome sequence is 225.7 megabases in span.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe present genome assembly from individual female (African malaria mosquito; Arthropoda; Insecta; Diptera; Culicidae) from Lopé, Gabon. The genome sequence is 270 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into three chromosomal pseudomolecules with the X sex chromosome assembled for both species.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe adaptation of malaria vectors to domestic settings is directly linked to their ability to feed on humans. The strength of this species-habitat association is unequal across the species within the genus, with the major vectors being particularly dependent on humans. However, our understanding of how blood-feeding behavior interacts with and adapts to environmental settings, including the presence of humans, remains limited.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUnlabelled: Species distributed across heterogeneous environments often evolve locally adapted populations, but understanding how these persist in the presence of homogenizing gene flow remains puzzling. In Gabon, a major African malaria mosquito is found along an ecological gradient, including a sylvatic population, away of any human presence. This study identifies into the genomic signatures of local adaptation in populations from distinct environments including the urban area of Libreville, and two proximate sites 10km apart in the La Lopé National Park (LLP), a village and its sylvatic neighborhood.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMalar J
May 2024
Background: This study aimed to assess the spatial distribution of Anopheles mosquito larval habitats and the environmental factors associated with them, as a prerequisite for the implementation of larviciding.
Methods: The study was conducted in December 2021, during the transition period between the end of the short rainy season (September-November) and the short dry season (December-February). Physical, biological, and land cover data were integrated with entomological observations to collect Anopheles larvae in three major towns: Mitzic, Oyem, and Bitam, using the "dipping" method during the transition from rainy to dry season.
In Africa, vector-borne diseases are a major public health issue, especially in cities. Urban greening is increasingly considered to promote inhabitants' well-being. However, the impact of urban green spaces on vector risk remains poorly investigated, particularly urban forests in poor hygienic conditions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMosquito surveillance programmes are essential to assess the risks of local vector-borne disease outbreaks as well as for early detection of mosquito invasion events. Surveys are usually performed with traditional sampling tools (i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe ANOSPP amplicon panel is a genus-wide targeted sequencing panel to facilitate large-scale monitoring of species diversity. Combining information from the 62 nuclear amplicons present in the ANOSPP panel allows for a more senstive and specific species assignment than single gene (e.g.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV), a human pathogenic arenavirus, is distributed worldwide. However, no human cases have been reported in Africa. This study aimed to investigate the current situation and potential risks of LCMV infection in Gabon, Central Africa.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDuring the last decade, the endosymbiont bacterium has emerged as a biological tool for vector disease control. However, for long time, it was believed that was absent in natural populations of . The recent discovery that species within the complex host in natural conditions has opened new opportunities for malaria control research in Africa.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlthough Plasmodium vivax is responsible for the majority of malaria infections outside Africa, little is known about its evolution and pathway to humans. Its closest genetic relative, P. vivax-like, was discovered in African great apes and is hypothesized to have given rise to P.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMost emerging infectious diseases are zoonoses originating from wildlife among which vector-borne diseases constitute a major risk for global human health. Understanding the transmission routes of mosquito-borne pathogens in wildlife crucially depends on recording mosquito blood-feeding patterns. During an extensive longitudinal survey to study sylvatic anophelines in two wildlife reserves in Gabon, we collected 2,415 mosquitoes of which only 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAbout 60% of emerging infectious diseases in humans are of zoonotic origin. Their increasing number requires the development of new methods for early detection and monitoring of infectious agents in wildlife. Here, we investigated whether blood meals from hematophagous flies could be used to identify the infectious agents circulating in wild vertebrates.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The genus Spelaeomyia includes four African species considered as being cavernicolous: Spelaeomyia darlingi, Spelaeomyia mirabilis, Spelaeomyia emilii and Spelaeomyia moucheti. Despite a potential role in Leishmania major leishmaniasis transmission in Mali, no molecular studies and only few morphological studies have addressed relationships between species of Spelaeomyia.
Methods: Specimens of Sa.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
May 2016
Recent studies have highlighted the large diversity of malaria parasites infecting African great apes (subgenus Laverania) and their strong host specificity. Although the existence of genetic incompatibilities preventing the cross-species transfer may explain host specificity, the existence of vectors with a high preference for a determined host represents another possibility. To test this hypothesis, we undertook a 15-mo-long longitudinal entomological survey in two forest regions of Gabon, where wild apes live, at different heights under the canopy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRe-examination, using molecular tools, of the diversity of haemosporidian parasites (among which the agents of human malaria are the best known) has generally led to rearrangements of traditional classifications. In this study, we explored the diversity of haemosporidian parasites infecting vertebrate species (particularly mammals, birds and reptiles) living in the forests of Gabon (Central Africa), by analyzing a collection of 492 bushmeat samples. We found that samples from five mammalian species (four duiker and one pangolin species), one bird and one turtle species were infected by haemosporidian parasites.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUnderstanding how divergent selection generates adaptive phenotypic and population diversification provides a mechanistic explanation of speciation in recently separated species pairs. Towards this goal, we sought ecological gradients of divergence between the cryptic malaria vectors Anopheles coluzzii and An. gambiae and then looked for a physiological trait that may underlie such divergence.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe genus Anopheles includes mosquito vectors of human malaria and arboviruses. In sub-Saharan Africa, the anopheline fauna is rich of nearly 150 species, few of which are anthropophilic and capable of transmitting pathogens to humans. Some of the remaining species are found in forests far from human environments and are vectors of wildlife pathogens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMem Inst Oswaldo Cruz
November 2013
During a research project aimed at the study of the Culicinae fauna of Gabon and carried out in the National Park of La Lopé, we captured an unknown sandfly male specimen (genus Phlebotomus) by CDC miniature light trap belonging to a new species for Science. Furthermore, the originality of his genitalia does not allow us to include this species in one of the existing subgenus, thus in this paper we propose the creation of a new subgenus, as Phlebotomus (Legeromyia) multihamatus sp. nov.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPlasmodium vivax is considered to be absent from Central and West Africa because of the protective effect of Duffy negativity. However, there are reports of persons returning from these areas infected with this parasite and observations suggesting the existence of transmission. Among the possible explanations for this apparent paradox, the existence of a zoonotic reservoir has been proposed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDuring the last four years, knowledge about the diversity of Plasmodium species in African great apes has considerably increased. Several new species were described in chimpanzees and gorillas, and some species that were previously considered as strictly of human interest were found to be infecting African apes. The description in gorillas of P.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis paper attempts to expand on the current knowledge regarding the evolutionary history of bat haemosporidian parasites. Using modern molecular tools as adjuncts to existing morphological descriptions, our understanding of the diversity of these parasites is discussed. The biogeography and host range distribution together with possible host-parasite interactions remain to be evaluated in more detail.
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