Malaria vectors in South America: current and future scenarios.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Malaria remains a significant public health issue in South America. Future climate change may influence the distribution of the disease, which is dependent on the distribution of those Anopheles mosquitoes competent to transmit Plasmodium falciparum. Herein, predictive niche models of the habitat suitability for P. falciparum, the current primary vector Anopheles darlingi and nine other known and/or potential vector species of the Neotropical Albitarsis Complex, were used to document the current situation and project future scenarios under climate changes in South America in 2070.

Methods

To build each ecological niche model, we employed topography, climate and biome, and the currently defined distribution of P. falciparum, An. darlingi and nine species comprising

SUBMITTER: Laporta GZ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4539674 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature