Behavioural studies of anopheles gambia and culex quinquefasciatus for the development of odour-baited traps to monitor the epidemiology of malaria and other vector-borne diseases and to improve vector control programmes

Objective

IN SEPTEMBER 1991 WE SUBMITTED A PROPOSAL TO STD-3 ENTITLED : "BEHAVIOURAL STUDIES OF ANOPHELES GAMBLIAE AND CULEX QUINQUEFASCIATUS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF MALARIA AND OTHER VECTOR-BORNE DISEASES AND TO IMPROVE VECTOR CONTROL PROGRAMMES".
THIS PROPOSAL HAS SINCE BEEN APPROVED BY EC AND FUNDING ARRANGMENTS HAVE BEEN MADE. THE PRESENT PROPOSAL IS AN ADDITION TO THIS PROJECT. A SUMMARY OF THE PROJECT IS PRESENTED BELOW :
IT IS PROPOSED (1) TO STUDY THE PRINCIPLE CUES THAT MOSQUITOES USE TO IDENTIFY A (HUMAN) HOST ; (2) TO ANALYZE HOW THESE CUES GUIDE MOSQUITOS TO THE HOST AND (3) TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF INSECTICIDES ON HOST-SEEKING BEHAVIOUR. THE TARGET INSECT WILL BE ANOPHELES GAMBIAE, BUT WORK ON OTHER MALARIA MOSQUITOS AND ON CULEX QUINQUEFASCIATUS WILL BE INCLUDED AS WELL. THIS WILL INVOLVE A CONTINUOUS INTERACTION BETWEEN EXPERIMENTS IN THE FIELD (TANWANIA) AND THE LABORATORY (SEVERAL INSTITUTES IN EUROPE). IN THE FIELD WORK WILL CONCENTRATE ON HOUSE ENTRY, HOST-LOCATION AND LANDING BEHAVIOUR OF MOSQUITOS WITH THE USE OF REMOTE CONTROLLED INFRA-RED SENSITIVE VIDEO RECORDINGS. THE STUDY WILL BE DONE IN EXPERIMENTAL HUTS AND WITH CONSTANT PAIRS OF HOSTS. IN THE LABORATORY MOSQUITO BEHAVIOUR DURING EXPOSURE TO HOST ODOURS AND OTHER HOST EMANATED CUES WILL BE INVESTIGATED. THIS WORK WILL BE DONE IN CLIMATICALLY CONTROLLED WINDTUNNELS WITH VIDEO RECORDING. HOST-ODOURS WILL BE COLLECTED ON ABSORBENTS AND SUBJECTED TO CHEMICAL ANALYSIS USING GC-MS. FRACTIONS OF ODOURS OR SINGLE COMPOUNDS WILL BE INVES TIGATED ON THE MOSQUITOES' RESPONSE, FIRST IN THE WINDTUNNEL AND, IF FOUND INTERESTED, IN THE FIELD. IS IS EXPECTED THAT AT THE END OF THE STUDY SEVERAL CUES WITH WHICH THE BEHAVIOUR OF THE MOSQUITOS CAN BE MANIPULATED WILL HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED.
THE STUDY WILL ALSO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF INSECTICIDES, PLACED ON WALLS OR MOSQUITO NETS, ON MOSQUITO BEHAVIOUR IN ORDER TO ANSWER QUESTIONS CONCERNING THE SUPPOSED CHANGES IN BEHAVIOUR CAUSED BY SUCH INSECTICIDES AS PERMETHRIN, DELTAMETHRIN, MALATHION AND DDT.
SUMMARY OF THE ADDITIONNAL PROPOSAL
THE GENETICAL ASPECT OF HOST-SEEKING BEHAVIOUR WILL ALSO BE EXPLORED BY COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF BEHAVIOURAL RESPONSES.

Fields of science

• medical and health sciences › health sciences › infectious diseases › malaria
• social sciences › psychology › behavioural psychology
• medical and health sciences › health sciences › public health › epidemiology
• natural sciences › biological sciences › zoology › entomology
• natural sciences › biological sciences › zoology › invertebrate zoology

Programme(s)

• FP3-STD 3 - Specific research and technological development programme (EEC) in the field of the life sciences and technologies for developing countries, 1990-1994

Topic(s)

Data not available

Call for proposal

Data not available

Funding Scheme

CSC - Cost-sharing contracts

Coordinator

WAGENINGEN UNIVERSITY

Address

Binnenhaven 7
6700 EH Wageningen
Netherlands

Participants (3)

NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH

Tanzania

Address

Off Ocean Road
022 Dar-es-salaam

Natural Resources Institute

United Kingdom

Address

Central Avenue Chatham Maritime
ME4 4TB Chatham

Links

Università degli Studi di Roma La Sapienza

Italy

Address

Piazzale Aldo Moro 5
00185 Roma