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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Gainesville, Florida » Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology » Mosquito and Fly Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #401190
Research Project: Integrated Pest Management of Mosquitoes and Biting Flies

Location: Mosquito and Fly Research

Title: Implementation of insecticide resistance testing into an existing mosquito-borne pathogen surveillance program in Peru

Author
item CASTRO-LLANOS, FANNY - Us Navy
item FLORES-MENDOZA, CARMEN - Us Navy
item ESCOBEDO-VARGAS, KARIN - Us Navy
item LOZANO, MARISA - Us Navy
item ZORRILLA, VICTOR - Us Navy
item LOPEZ-SIFUENTES, VICTOR - Us Navy
item ESPADA, LIZ - Us Navy
item VASQUEZ, GISSELLA - Us Navy
item ASTETE, HELVIO - Us Navy
item Estep Iii, Alden
item FISHER, MICHAEL - Us Navy
item LARSON, RYAN - Us Navy

Submitted to: Wingbeats
Publication Type: Trade Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/8/2023
Publication Date: 3/15/2023
Citation: Castro-Llanos, F., Flores-Mendoza, C., Escobedo-Vargas, K., Lozano, M., Zorrilla, V., Lopez-Sifuentes, V., Espada, L., Vasquez, G., Astete, H., Estep Iii, A.S., Fisher, M.L., Larson, R.T. 2023. Implementation of insecticide resistance testing into an existing mosquito-borne pathogen surveillance program in Peru. Wingbeats. 34(1):28-33.

Interpretive Summary: Insecticide resistance is commonly found in mosquitoes and is an issue of concern for mosquito control programs because it can reduce the ability to effectively control pest mosquitoes. and risks continued transmission of public health diseases. Peru has a robust pathogen screening program for mosquito transmitted disease but this program did not generate information on insecticide resistance which is critical for effective control. This article discusses the successful changes made to the existing program to include insecticide resistance assessment in Aedes aegypti, the primary mosquito vector of dengue virus, Zika virus and yellow fever. Now, information useful for improving mosquito control is also produced alongside the standard pathogen testing program.

Technical Abstract: Peru is the fourth most populous country in South America with a population of just under 35 million. Like most countries with extensive trade and tourism, Peru has seen the arrival of invasive insects that bring new risks to agriculture but also increase public health risks. Aedes aegypti, the primary vector of several arboviral diseases, returned to Peru in 1984 with detections in Northern departments of Loreto, near Brazil, and Tumbes, near Ecuador. Significant outbreaks of dengue are more and more frequent with more than 144,000 cases reported from 2017-2020. The collaborative work of NAMRU-6 has allowed them to collect Aedes aegypti from many locations across Peru during projects supporting Peruvian military, INS and local MOHs. Recent studies in specific areas have indicated that pyrethroid resistance and the knockdown resistance mutations (kdr) associated with resistance are present so NAMRU-6 began a collaborative effort to conduct a nationwide survey of these markers to examine the extent of pyrethroid resistance in Peruvian Aedes aegypti alongside ongoing efforts to screen for pathogens. This publication discusses the changes made to successfully add insecticide resistance testing into existing pathogen testing workflows and can be a road map for other programs to add IR testing into their processes. Insecticide resistance information can increase the effectiveness of the overall integrated vector management and can reduce public health disease.