Seasonality, blood feeding behavior, and transmission of Plasmodium falciparum by Anopheles arabiensis after an extended drought in southern Zambia

Rebekah J. Kent, Philip E. Thuma, Sungano Mharakurwa, Douglas E. Norris

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

104 Scopus citations

Abstract

Transmission of Plasmodium falciparum is hyperendemic in southern Zambia. However, no data on the entomologic aspects of malaria transmission have been published from Zambia in more than 25 years. We evaluated seasonal malaria transmission by Anopheles arabiensis and An. funestus s.s. and characterized the blood feeding behavior of An. arabiensis in two village areas. Transmission during the 2004-2005 rainy season was nearly zero because of widespread drought. During 2005-2006, the estimated entomologic inoculation rate values were 1.6 and 18.3 infective bites per person per transmission season in each of the two village areas, respectively. Finally, with a human blood index of 0.923, An. arabiensis was substantially more anthropophilic in our study area than comparable samples of indoor-resting An. arabiensis throughout Africa and was the primary vector responsible for transmission of P. falciparum.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)267-274
Number of pages8
JournalAmerican Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Volume76
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2007

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Parasitology
  • Virology
  • Infectious Diseases

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