Presence of the Anopheles culicifacies complex species A in southeast Iran.

Background: The Anopheles culicifacies complex is one of the most important malaria vectors in Southeast Asia and Southeastern Iran. Although the sibling species within this complex are morphologically indistinguishable, they differ significantly in their disease transmission potential, blood-feeding behaviour, and other biological traits. Cytogenetic and chromosomal studies have identified five sibling species within this complex: A, B, C, D, and E.

Host preference of Anopheles stephensi mosquitoes for blood feeding in south of Iran: Insights from Multiplex-PCR analysis.

Background: The study aims to determine the host preference for blood feeding among potential hosts of Anopheles stephensi in Iran, using the Multiplex-PCR method. An. stephensi is the primary malaria vector in urban areas of South Asia and the Middle East, including southern Iran, where approximately 30.

Molecular detection of DNA in wild-caught sand flies, and spp. in northern Iran.

Leishmaniasis is currently considered a major health problem in Iran, posing an increasing threat to society's development in various dimensions. This study aimed to detect infection in wild-caught sand flies in Sari City, northern Iran. Sand flies were collected using sticky traps, and DNA was identified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting the ITS2-rDNA region, followed by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis.

Genetic structure of black soldier flies in northern Iran.

Background: The black soldier fly (BSF), Hermetia illucens, is known for nutrient-recycling through the bioconversion of organic waste into protein-rich insect larvae that can be processed into an animal feed ingredient. However, information on species distribution and its genetic structure in Iran is scarce.

Methods And Results: We directed a survey on the Caspian Sea coast, with a reconstructing demographic relationships study using two parts of mitochondrial cytochrome C oxidase 1 (COI) gene (barcode and 3' end regions) and nuclear internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) to identify BSF' genetic diversity in retrospect to the global diversity and the potential origin of the Iranian BSF population.

Assessing Survival of Transgenic Bacteria, AS1 and , in Sugar Bait, White Saxaul Plant () and Rodent Barrow's Soil, A Contained-Field Study for Paratransgenesis Approach.

Background: The viability and persistence of engineered bacterium candidates in field conditions is one of the considerable challenges in the paratransgenesis approach to fighting vector-borne diseases.

Methods: In this study two engineered bacterium candidates to produce paratransgenic sand flies, AS1 and expressing m-Cherry fluorescent were applied on the leaves of the white saxaul plant (), sugar bait, and rodent burrow soil and their persistent time was tested in desert condition, Matin Abad County, Isfahan, August 2022. A PBS suspension of 10 cells/ml was used for sugar bait, spraying on plant leaves (∼10 cm) and 10 cm of rodent burrow soil.

Ace-1 Target Site Status and Metabolic Detoxification Associated with Bendiocarb Resistance in the Field Populations of Main Malaria Vector, in Iran.

Background: is the main vector of malaria in Iran. This study aimed to determine the susceptibility of from the south of Iran to bendiocarb and to investigate biochemical and molecular resistance mechanisms in this species.

Methods: Wild were collected from Hormozgan Province and reared to the adult stage.

The monsoon-associated equine South African pointy mosquito 'Aedes caballus'; the first comprehensive record from southeastern Iran with a description of ecological, morphological, and molecular aspects.

The equine South African pointy vector mosquito, Aedes caballus, poses a significant threat to human health due to its capacity for transmitting arboviruses. Despite favorable climate for its existence in southeast Iran, previous records of this species in the area have indicated very low abundance. This comprehensive field and laboratory study aimed to assess its current adult population status in this region, utilizing a combination of ecological, morphological and molecular techniques.

A survey of Wolbachia infection in brachyceran flies from Iran.

Wolbachia is a maternally inherited intracellular bacterium that is considered to be the most plentiful endosymbiont found in arthropods. It reproductively manipulates its host to increase the chances of being transmitted to the insect progeny; and it is currently used as a means of suppressing disease vector populations or controlling vector-borne diseases. Studies of the dissemination and prevalence of Wolbachia among its arthropod hosts are important for its possible use as a biological control agent.

Colonization pattern and thermal needs of immature phases of (Diptera: Sarcophagidae): Significance for estimating postmortem interval.

Members of Sarcophagidae are necrophagous and are commonly found on decaying carcasses; and their developmental forms are important indicators for the approximation of lowest postmortem interval (PMImin). This work describes the biological characteristics of from Tehran, Iran. Various temperature regimes were applied to estimate the thermal summation constant (k) and thermal requirements for development of Five growth proceedings, containing 1st ecdysis, 2nd ecdysis, wandering, pupariation and eclosion, were investigated under eight fixed temperature regimes (6-30 °C).

Association Between Infection and Susceptibility to Deltamethrin Insecticide in (Diptera: Psychodidae), the Main Vector of Zoonotic Cutaneous Leishmaniasis.

(Diptera: Psychodidae) is the main vector of zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis. is a symbiotic alphaproteobacteria of arthropods that can be involved in susceptibility or resistance. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between and Deltamethrin susceptibility/resistance in .

Development of a degree-day model to predict the growth of Anopheles stephensi (Diptera: Culicidae): implication for vector control management.

Anopheles stephensi is an efficient vector of malaria parasites in Iran. Despite its importance in malaria transmission, there is a scarcity of accurate predictive models of its rates of development at different temperatures. A laboratory colony of An.

Rodents as vehicle for delivery of transgenic bacteria to make paratransgenic sand fly vectors of cutaneous leishmaniasis in field condition.

Vector-borne diseases, among them leishmaniasis, cause more than 700,000 deaths annually. The lack of an effective vaccination and the increasing resistance of sand flies to insecticides require the urgent development of innovative approaches to contain the disease. The use of engineered bacteria that express anti-parasite molecules (paratransgenesis) shows much promise.

Molecular Characterization of Spp (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae, Paederinae) the Agent of Human Linear Dermatitis in the Caspian Sea Coast, North of Iran.

Background: A combined morphological and molecular survey was performed to determine the agent of human linear dermatitis Fabricius, 1775 (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae, Paederinae) species composition in Mazandaran Province in the Caspian Sea coast in northern Iran, where most of linear dermatitis cases of the country occurred.

Methods: Altogether, 397 specimens were collected from May to August 2021 and classified using morphological characters and ITS2-rDNA sequence analysis.

Results: Morphological investigation revealed that all the specimens were ITS2 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) direct-sequences and the profiles of restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) derived from digestion of PCR products by I, II, and I enzymes were identical confirming the morphological results, implying that all specimens belonged to a single taxon.

Efficiency of mitochondrial genes and nuclear Alu elements in detecting human DNA in blood meals of Anopheles stephensi mosquitoes: a time-course study.

Background: The time required for PCR detection of DNA in human blood meals in vector mosquitoes may vary, depending on the molecular markers used, based on the size and copy number of the amplicons. Detailed knowledge of the blood-feeding behavior of mosquito populations in nature is an essential component for evaluating their vectorial capacity and for assessing the roles of individual vertebrates as potential hosts involved in the transmission of vector-borne diseases.

Methods: Laboratory experiments were conducted to compare the time course of PCR detection of DNA in human blood meals from individual blood-fed Anopheles stephensi mosquitoes, using loci with different characteristics, including two mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genes, cytB (228 bp) and 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) (157 bp) and nuclear Alu-repeat elements (226 bp) at different time points after the blood meal.

Wolbachia infection in native populations of Blattella germanica and Periplaneta americana.

Cockroaches are significant pests worldwide, being important in medical, veterinary, and public health fields. Control of cockroaches is difficult because they have robust reproductive ability and high adaptability and are resistant to many insecticides. Wolbachia is an endosymbiont bacterium that infects the reproductive organs of approximately 70% of insect species and has become a promising biological agent for controlling insect pests.

Study on Hard and Soft Ticks of Domestic and Wild Animals in Western Iran.

Background: Ticks are blood-sucking ectoparasites of many vertebrates and act as vectors of a wide range of vector-borne diseases. Alongside pathogens transmission, ticks also cause economic losses in animal industry such as production loss, physical damage, anemia, and poisoning. This study aimed to determine the fauna, geographical distribution and seasonal activity of ticks collected from animals in Lorestan Province, west of Iran.

Sex-typing of ingested human blood meal in Anopheles stephensi mosquito based on the amelogenin gene.

Identifying the sex of human hosts of insect disease vectors, using PCR amplification of the amelogenin gene (AMEL) from the ingested blood meal is an increasingly useful technique for epidemiological studies of vector-borne diseases, as well as within the criminal justice system. Detection of DNA from ingested blood is influenced by the choice of DNA extraction method, genomic target region, type and length of PCR, and rate of degradation in the DNA samples over time. Here, we have tested two types of PCR (i.

The different aspects of attractive toxic baits containing fipronil for control of the German cockroach (Blattella germanica).

The use of Attractive Toxic Baits (ATBs) is considered to be a low-risk practical method for controlling cockroaches. This study evaluates the attractiveness of a lab-made, fipronil-containing bait, and its effect on the food consumption and mortality of the German cockroach Blattella germanica, under field and laboratory conditions. Different developmental stages of the cockroach were used to determine their preferred carbohydrate/protein rich foods and examine the effectiveness of lab-made baits.

Comparative analysis of the gut microbiota of sand fly vectors of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis (ZVL) in Iran; host-environment interplay shapes diversity.

The development of Leishmania parasites within sand fly vectors occurs entirely in the insect gut lumen, in the presence of symbiotic and commensal bacteria. The impacts of host species and environment on the gut microbiome are currently poorly understood. We employed MiSeq sequencing of the V3-16S rRNA gene amplicons to characterize and compare the gut microbiota of field-collected populations of Phlebotomus kandelakii, P.

Molecular and Biochemical Detection of Insecticide Resistance in the Leishmania Vector, Phlebotomus papatasi (Diptera: Psychodidae) to Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane and Pyrethroids, in Central Iran.

The aim of the present study was to explore resistance markers and possible biochemical resistance mechanisms in the Phlebotomine sand fly Phlebotomus papatasi in Esfahan Province, central Iran. Homogenous resistant strains of sand flies were obtained by exposing P. papatasi collected from Esfahan to a single diagnostic dose of DDT.

Evaluation of anti-malaria potency of wild and genetically modified Enterobacter cloacae expressing effector proteins in Anopheles stephensi.

Background: Malaria is one of the most lethal infectious diseases in tropical and subtropical areas of the world. Paratransgenesis using symbiotic bacteria offers a sustainable and environmentally friendly strategy to combat this disease. In the study reported here, we evaluated the disruption of malaria transmission in the Anopheles stephensi-Plasmodium berghei assemblage using the wild-type (WT) and three modified strains of the insect gut bacterium, Enterobacter cloacae.

Current Status of Insecticide Susceptibility in the Principal Malaria Vector, in Three Northern States of Nigeria.

Background: Malaria is a major public health problem in Nigeria with 97% of its population with high morbidity and mortality. Mosquitoes play an important role in the transmission of malaria parasites. This study was conducted to evaluate the current resistance status of to insecticides.

New Data on Two Subspecies of , the Most Medically Important Scorpion Species in Northwestern Iran.

Scorpions are among the most medically important arthropods in Iran, particularly northwestern areas. To date, five scorpion species, i.e.

Insecticide Resistance Status of Malaria Vectors in a Malarious Area, Southeast of Iran.

Background: Malaria continues to be the main vector-borne disease in Iran. The endemic foci of malaria are in Sistan and Baluchistan Province, the borderline of Iran and Pakistan. By the year 2020 the program of the country is malaria elimination.

Hyalomma spp. ticks and associated Anaplasma spp. and Ehrlichia spp. on the Iran-Pakistan border.

Background: Anaplasmosis and ehrlichiosis are tick-borne diseases affecting humans and livestock, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions. Animal husbandry is the main activity of people on the borders of Iran and Pakistan, with thousands of cattle crossing the border each week.

Methods: PCR and sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene was used to determine the percentage and geographical distribution of the pathogens carried by Hyalomma spp.