Medical & Health Sciences

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Research Papers/Topics in Medical & Health Sciences

Ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) infesting cattle in coastal Kenya harbor a diverse array of tick-borne pathogens

Abstract: Ticks and the microbes they transmit have emerged in sub-Saharan Africa as a major threat to veterinary and public health. Although progress has been made in detecting and identifying tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) across vast agroecologies of Kenya, comprehensive information on tick species infesting cattle and their associated pathogens in coastal Kenya needs to be updated and expanded. Ticks infesting extensively grazed zebu cattle in 14 villages were sampled and identified based o...

A cross-sectional observational study investigating the association between sedges (swamp grasses, Cyperaceae) and the prevalence of immature malaria vectors in aquatic habitats along the sho

Abstract: Background: Strategies that involve manipulations of the odour-orientation of gravid malaria vectors could lead to novel attract-and-kill interventions. Recent work has highlighted the potential involvement of graminoid plants in luring vectors to oviposition sites. This study aimed to analyse the association between water-indicating graminoid plants (Cyperaceae, sedges), other abiotic and biotic factors and the presence and abundance of early instar Anopheles larvae in aquatic hab...

Competing risk events in antimalarial drug trials in uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria: a WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance Network individual participant data meta-analysis

Abstract: Background: Therapeutic efcacy studies in uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria are confounded by new infections, which constitute competing risk events since they can potentially preclude/pre-empt the detection of subsequent recrudescence of persistent, sub-microscopic primary infections. Methods: Antimalarial studies typically report the risk of recrudescence derived using the Kaplan–Meier (K–M) method, which considers new infections acquired during the follow-up period...

The Role of Unused Swimming Pools as a Habitat for Anopheles Immature Stages in Urban Malindi, Kenya

Abstract: ABSTRACT. We conducted larval surveys in habitats located in urban Malindi, Kenya, in 2005 and 2006 with the goal of determining the productivity of unused swimming pools in relation to other habitats. Of the 250 habitats sampled, 66 were unused swimming pools, 93 were wells, 60 were drainage troughs, and 31 were miscellaneous areas, such as septic tanks, swamps, concrete tanks, fish ponds, car-track depressions, and drainage ponds. Anopheles gambiae s.l. was the only anophelines s...

Estimating Dispersal and Survival of Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles funestus Along the Kenyan Coast by Using Mark–Release–Recapture Methods

Abstract: Mark-Drelease-Drecapture (MRR) experiments were conducted with emerging Anopheles gambiae s.l. and Anopheles funestus Giles at Jaribuni and Mtepeni in KiliÞ, along the Kenyan Coast. Of 739 and 1,246 Anopheles released at Jaribuni and Mtepeni, 24.6 and 4.33% were recaptured, respectively. The daily survival probability was 0.96 for An. funestus and 0.95 for An. gambiae in Jaribuni and 0.83 and 0.95, respectively, in Mtepeni. The maximum ßight distance recorded was 661 m. The high ...

Environmental Abundance of Anopheles (Diptera: Culicidae) Larval Habitats on Land Cover Change Sites in Karima Village, Mwea Rice Scheme, Kenya.

Abstract: A study was carried out at Karima Village in the Mwea Rice Irrigation Scheme in Kenya to assess the impact of rice husbandry and associated land cover change for mosquito larval abundance. A multi-temporal, land use land cover (LULC) classification dataset incorporating distributions of Anopheles arabiensis aquatic larval habitats was produced in ERDAS Imagine version 8.7 using combined images from IKONOS at 4m spatial resolution from 2005 and Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM)™ classi...

Using Nylon Strips to Dispense Mosquito Attractants for Sampling the Malaria Vector Anopheles gambiae s.s.

Abstract: Synthetic versions of human derived kairomones can be used as baits when trapping host seeking mosquitoes. The effectiveness of these lures depends not only on their attractiveness to the mosquitoes but also on the medium from which they are dispensed.We report on the development and evaluation of nylon strips as a method of dispensing odorants attractive to the malaria vector, Anopheles gambiae s.s. (Giles).When a synthetic blend of attractants was dispensed using this method,sign...

Phlebotomus (Larroussius) orientalis (Diptera: Psychodidae) as a probable secondary vector of visceral leishmaniasis in Kenya

Abstract: According to the World Health Organization’s reports, leishmaniases in humans are caused by 20 species of protozoa, belonging to the genus Leishmania1.The parasites are transmitted by the bite of a female tiny, 2–3 mm long insect vector, the phlebotomine sandfly1. Leishmaniasis endemic areas in Kenya are—West Pokot, Kitui, Machakos, Meru,Koibatek and Kajiado districts2–6. Kala-azar (Visceral leishmaniasis) in these endemic sites is transmitted by Phlebotomus martini (Dipter...

Influence of Biological and Physicochemical Characteristics of Larval Habitats on the Body Size of Anopheles gambiae Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) along the Kenyan coast

Abstract: Background & objectives: The number and productivity of larval habitats ultimately determine the density of adult mosquitoes. The biological and physicochemical conditions at the larval habitat affect larval development hence affecting the adult body size. The influence of biological and physicochemical characteristics on the body size of Anopheles gambiae was assessed in Jaribuni village, Kilifi district along the Kenyan Coast. Methods: Ten cages measuring 1 × 1 × 1 m (1 m3) wi...

Anopheles arabiensis oviposition site selection in response to habitat persistence and associated physicochemical parameters, bacteria and volatile profiles.

Abstract: A better understanding of the oviposition behaviour of malaria vectors might facilitate development of new vector control tools. However, factors that guide aquatic habitat selection of gravid females is poorly understood. This study explored the relative attractiveness of similar artificial ponds (0.8 m2 ) aged at varying length prior to opening in such a way that wild Anopheles arabiensis could choose between ponds that were freshly set up, 4 or 17 days old to lay eggs. Physicoch...

Community based integrated vector management for malaria control: lessons from three years’ experience (2016–2018) in Botor-Tolay district, southwestern Ethiopia

Abstract: Background: Integrated vector management (IVM) remains a key strategy in the fight against vector-borne diseases including malaria. However, impacts of the strategy should be regularly monitored based on feedback obtained through research. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of IVM for malaria control in BotorTolay district, southwestern Ethiopia after three years (2016–2018) of IVM implementation. Method: Prior to the implementation of IVM, a survey of socio-dem...

A microsporidian impairs Plasmodium falciparum transmission in Anopheles arabiensis mosquitoes.

Abstract: A possible malaria control approach involves the dissemination in mosquitoes of inherited symbiotic microbes to block Plasmodium transmission. However, in the Anopheles gambiae complex, the primary African vectors of malaria, there are limited reports of inherited symbionts that impair transmission. We show that a vertically transmitted microsporidian symbiont (Microsporidia MB) in the An. gambiae complex can impair Plasmodium transmission. Microsporidia MB is present at moderate p...

Integrated health interventions for improved livelihoods: A case study in Ethiopia.

Abstract: Smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) face multifaceted and co-existing risks, such as human and animal diseases and pests. Even though smallholder farmers often experience these challenges simultaneously, interventions to address these challenges are often implemented in a piecemeal fashion. However, managing agricultural production constraints without alleviating human and livestock health burdens might not generate significant and sustained benefits to achieve the desi...

Multi-compartment chemical characterization and risk assessment of chemicals of emerging concern in freshwater systems of western Kenya

Abstract: Background: Within the last decades, there has been increasing research on the occurrence of chemicals of emerging concern (CECs) in aquatic ecosystems due to their potential adverse efects on freshwater organisms and risk to human health. However, information on CECs in freshwater environments in sub-Saharan countries is very limited. Here, we investigated the occurrence of CECs in snails and sediments collected from 48 sites within the Lake Victoria South Basin, Kenya, which have...

Larval habitat diversity and mosquito species distribution along the coast of Kenya [version 1; peer review: awaiting peer review]

Abstract: Background: Management of arboviruses relies heavily on vector control. Implementation and sustenance of effective control measures requires regular surveillance of mosquito occurrences, species abundance and distribution. The current study evaluated larval habitat diversity and productivity, mosquito species diversity and distribution in selected sites along the coast of Kenya. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of mosquito breeding habitats, species diversity and distribution was ...


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