Mosquito Species Composition andPlasmodium vivaxInfection Rates on Baengnyeong-do (Island), Republic of Korea

Abstract

Vivax malaria is a significant military and civilian health threat in the north of the Republic of Korea (ROK). The island of Baengnyeong-do is the westernmost point of the ROK and is located close to the southwestern coast of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). Mosquitoes were collected using a black light trap on Baengnyeong-do, and Anopheles spp. were assayed by PCR, to identify the species, and screened for sporozoites of Plasmodium vivax. Of a subsample of 257 mosquitoes, Anopheles lesteri was the most frequently collected (49.8%), followed by Anopheles sinensis (22.6%), Anopheles pullus (18.7%), Anopheles kleini (7.8%), and Anopheles belenrae (1.2%). The overall sporozoite rate was 3.1%, with the highest rates observed in An. kleini (15.0%), An. sinensis (5.2%), and An. lesteri (1.6%). No sporozoite positive An. pullus or An. belenrae were observed. The results extend our knowledge of the distribution and potential role in malaria transmission of An. kleini, An. lesteri, and An. sinensis, for an area previously considered to be at a low risk for contracting vivax malaria.

Seasonal dynamics ofAnophelesspecies at three locations in the Republic of Korea

“…lesteri Baisas & Hu, which are more commonly collected near the DMZ, as the primary vectors of vivax malaria in Korea, while An. sinensis is a poor vector (Shin et al , Lee et al , Foley et al , , Joshi et al , , Ubalee et al ). Less is known about the malaria vector competence of An.…”

“…pullus Yamada, and An. sineroides Yamada, which are more commonly collected near the DMZ than other areas of the ROK (Rueda et al , b, Kim et al , , Foley et al , Foley et al ). Results of previous studies of vector species seasonality and vectorial capacity need to be reassessed in view of new information (Wilkerson et al , Li et al , Rueda ) about the taxonomic complexity of anophelines in the ROK.…”

Distribution of malaria vectors and incidence of vivax malaria at Korean army installations near the demilitarized zone, Republic of Korea

“…kleini also are reported to be much higher for malaria high-risk areas near the DMZ compared with malaria low-risk areas south of Seoul where An . sinensis accounted for >95 % of Anopheles collected [ 7 , 35 ].…”

“…However, WHO in both the 2011 and 2015 malaria report continues to indicate that An. sinensis is the primary mosquito near the DMZ where malaria is transmitted, even though there is data to refute this supposition [ 7 , 11 , 12 , 35 , 37 , 40 , 41 ].…”

“…Anopheles kleini has been reported as the primary vivax malaria vector and predominant species collected near the DMZ since it was first described [ 16 , 30 , 34 ]. Joshi et al [ 32 , 35 ] also reported that An . lesteri demonstrated the highest susceptibility to P. vivax when compared to An .…”