DNA barcoding and surveillance sampling strategies for Culicoides biting midges (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) in southern India.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Culicoides spp. biting midges transmit bluetongue virus (BTV), the aetiological agent of bluetongue (BT), an economically important disease of ruminants. In southern India, hyperendemic outbreaks of BT exert high cost to subsistence farmers in the region, impacting on sheep production. Effective Culicoides spp. monitoring methods coupled with accurate species identification can accelerate responses for minimising BT outbreaks. Here, we assessed the utility of sampling methods and DNA barcoding for detection and identification of Culicoides spp. in southern India, in order to provide an informed basis for future monitoring of their populations in the region.

Methods

Culicoides spp. collected from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka were used to construct a framework for futur

SUBMITTER: Harrup LE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4994320 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature