Ecological drivers of dog heartworm transmission in California.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Effectively controlling heartworm disease-a major parasitic disease threatening animal health in the US and globally-requires understanding the local ecology of mosquito vectors involved in transmission. However, the key vector species in a given region are often unknown and challenging to identify. Here we investigate (i) the key vector species associated with transmission of the parasite, Dirofilaria immitis, in California and (ii) the climate and land cover drivers of vector presence.

Methods

To identify key mosquito vectors involved in transmission, we incorporated long-term, finely resolved mosquito surveillance data and dog heartworm case data in a statistical modeling approach (fixed-effects regression) that rigorously controls for other unobserved drivers

SUBMITTER: Couper LI 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9590206 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature