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- Title
Association between the potential distribution of Lutzomyia longipalpis and Nyssomyia whitmani and leishmaniasis incidence in Piauí State, Brazil.
- Authors
de Sousa, Raimundo Leoberto Torres; Araujo-Pereira, Thais de; Leal, Anangela Ravena da Silva; Freire, Simone Mousinho; Silva, Cleanto Luiz Maia; Mallet, Jacenir Reis dos Santos; Vilela, Mauricio Luiz; Vasconcelos, Silvia Alcântara; Gomes, Régis; Teixeira, Clarissa; Britto, Constança; Pita Pereira, Daniela de; Carvalho, Bruno Moreira de
- Abstract
Background: Leishmaniases are vector borne diseases caused by Leishmania spp. parasites transmitted by female sandflies (Diptera: Psychodidae) whose geographic distribution is influenced by environmental factors. Among the main tools for studying the distribution of vector species, modeling techniques are used to analyze the influence of climatic and environmental factors on the distribution of these insects and their association with human cases of the disease. Methodology/Principal findings: Here, we used a multiscale ecological niche modeling approach to assess the environmental suitability of sandfly vectors of the etiological agents of Visceral (VL) and American Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (ACL) in Piauí state, northeastern Brazil, and then evaluated their relationship with human disease incidence. For this, we obtained the geographic coordinates of the vector species Lutzomyia longipalpis and Nyssomyia whitmani through literature review, online databases and unpublished records. These data were used for the development of predictive models of the distribution of both sandflies species based on climatic and environmental variables. Finally, the environmental suitability for the presence of these vectors was compared with the incidence of both the diseases at the municipality level. The final models for each sandfly species showed good predictive powers with performance metric values of 0.889 for Lu. longipalpis and 0.776 for Ny. whitmani. The areas with greater environmental suitability for the presence of these species were concentrated in the central-north region of Piauí and coincide with the location of those municipalities presenting higher incidences of VL and ACL, situated in the central-north and extreme north of the state, respectively. The south and southeast regions of Piauí state have low incidence of these diseases and presented low environmental suitability for the presence of both vectors. Conclusions/Significance: We discuss how predictive modeling can guide entomological and epidemiological surveillances and recommend an increased supervision and control activities in Teresina (capital of the state of Piaui), Altos and Pedro II, in addition to other municipalities with similar social and environmental characteristics. Author summary: Sandflies are insects that actively participate in the transmission cycles of leishmaniasis and other diseases, and these invertebrate vectors are frequently found in areas with hot and humid climates. However, in addition to the climate, there are several factors that contribute to the occurrence of sandfly vectors, such as, the vegetation type, altitude, and land use and cover. Understanding which environmental variables are important for the presence of sandflies can help us to understand how these insects are distributed and overall, how this affects the transmission of the etiological agents of leishmaniasis. In this study, we performed a set of ecological models where environmental and climatic variables were combined in multiple scales and correlated with the presence of two sandflies species, Lutzomyia longipalpis and Nyssomyia whitmani, vectors of parasites causing visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis, respectively. We then combined this information with human disease data to assess potential risk areas in the state of Piauí, northeast Brazil. The resulting maps showed that municipalities of the central-north region of the state have favorable environment for the occurrence of these vectors in addition to higher incidence of leishmaniasis in humans. We thus recommend that control activities should be focused on this region of the state.
- Subjects
BRAZIL; LUTZOMYIA; LEISHMANIASIS; VECTOR-borne diseases; CUTANEOUS leishmaniasis; VISCERAL leishmaniasis; LYME disease
- Publication
PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 2023, Vol 16, Issue 6, p1
- ISSN
1935-2727
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1371/journal.pntd.0011388