Influence of environmental, geographic, socio-demographic, and epidemiological factors on presence of malaria at the community level in two continents.

The interactions of environmental, geographic, socio-demographic, and epidemiological factors in shaping mosquito-borne disease transmission dynamics are complex and changeable, influencing the abundance and distribution of vectors and the pathogens they transmit. In this study, 27 years of cross-sectional malaria survey data (1990-2017) were used to examine the effects of these factors on Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax malaria presence at the community level in Africa and Asia. Monthly long-term, open-source data for each factor were compiled and analyzed using generalized linear models and classification and regression trees.

Environmental and geographical factors influence the occurrence and abundance of the southern house mosquito, Culex quinquefasciatus, in Hawai'i.

Hawaiian honeycreepers, a group of endemic Hawaiian forest birds, are being threatened by avian malaria, a non-native disease that is driving honeycreepers populations to extinction. Avian malaria is caused by the parasite Plasmodium relictum, which is transmitted by the invasive mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus. Environmental and geographical factors play an important role in shaping mosquito-borne disease transmission dynamics through their influence on the distribution and abundance of mosquitoes.

Mapping current and future thermal limits to suitability for malaria transmission by the invasive mosquito Anopheles stephensi.

Background: Anopheles stephensi is a malaria-transmitting mosquito that has recently expanded from its primary range in Asia and the Middle East, to locations in Africa. This species is a competent vector of both Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax malaria. Perhaps most alarming, the characteristics of An.

The Role of Tire Leachate in Condition-Specific Competition and the Persistence of a Resident Mosquito from a Competitively Superior Invader.

(1) Background: Condition-specific competition, when the outcome of competition varies with abiotic conditions, can facilitate species coexistence in spatially or temporally variable environments. Discarded vehicle tires degrade to leach contaminants into collected rainwater that provide habitats for competing mosquito species. We tested the hypothesis that more highly degraded tires that contain greater tire leachate alters interspecific mosquito competition to produce a condition-specific advantage for the resident, , by altering the outcome of competition with the competitively superior invasive .

Temperature impacts the environmental suitability for malaria transmission by Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles stephensi.

Extrinsic environmental factors influence the spatiotemporal dynamics of many organisms, including insects that transmit the pathogens responsible for vector-borne diseases (VBDs). Temperature is an especially important constraint on the fitness of a wide variety of ectothermic insects. A mechanistic understanding of how temperature impacts traits of ectotherms, and thus the distribution of ectotherms and vector-borne infections, is key to predicting the consequences of climate change on transmission of VBDs like malaria.

Condition-Specific Competitive Effects of the Invasive Mosquito on the Resident among Different Urban Container Habitats May Explain Their Coexistence in the Field.

Condition-specific competition, when environmental conditions alter the outcome of competition, can foster the persistence of resident species after the invasion of a competitively superior invader. We test whether condition-specific competition can facilitate the areawide persistence of the resident and principal West Nile virus vector mosquito with the competitively superior invasive in water from different urban container habitats. (2) Methods: We tested the effects of manipulated numbers of on survival and development in water collected from common functional and discarded containers in Baltimore, MD, USA.

Thermal biology of mosquito-borne disease.

Mosquito-borne diseases cause a major burden of disease worldwide. The vital rates of these ectothermic vectors and parasites respond strongly and nonlinearly to temperature and therefore to climate change. Here, we review how trait-based approaches can synthesise and mechanistically predict the temperature dependence of transmission across vectors, pathogens, and environments.

Effects of ultraviolet radiation on metabolic rate and fitness of and mosquitoes.

Natural and anthropogenic changes (e.g., land use change, pollution) will alter many environmental factors in the coming years, including the amount of solar radiation reaching the earth's surface.

Effects of tire leachate on the invasive mosquito and the native congener .

Discarded vehicle tire casings are an important artificial habitat for the developmental stages of numerous vector mosquitoes. Discarded vehicle tires degrade under ultraviolet light and leach numerous soluble metals (e.g.