Vector-Borne Disease Control: Overview of Mosquito-

Borne Diseases and Control

HSCI 616: Environmental Health Science
Alexa Reyes
May 16, 2018
Abstract
Mosquitoes are a major health concern for public health specialist and environmentalist
because these insects can transmit deadly diseases that cause morbidity and mortality among
humans. In this literature review, I will go over mosquito’s life cycle, disease transmission and
the types of diseases that are transmitted when a female mosquito becomes infected.
Furthermore, I will cover all the techniques used to control mosquito population along with a
new technique that can also be used at home.
 If you have ever been bit by a mosquito you will know that not only is the bite itchy but

extremely annoying specially during warm/ humid weather. If your anything like me chances

are you’ve been bit in the most bizarre places such as your eyelid. The mosquito that bit me just

had to take it to the next level that is making me look like a boxing fighter with a swollen eye.

My interest in mosquitoes started then which ultimate lead me to major in Environmental

Health Science as an undergraduate. My curiosity in learning about their nature, life cycle and

learning more in debt about the vectors they transmit motivated me to start two internships at

Northwest Mosquito Vector Control District. Through research and volunteer work I’ve come to

learn that not all mosquitoes bite but that those that tend to do so are known as vectors of

disease. According to Kimura, “mosquitoes that are vectors are probably the most important

vectors of disease such as malaria, yellow fever (dengue), encephalitis and filariasis” (Kimura,

1994). It’s important to keep in mind that only the females are responsible for transmitting

most diseases. Male mosquitoes sole purpose is to mate with the female and help produce

viable offspring.

The male mosquito usually is smaller in size, has plumose antennae and only feed on

flower nectar. While the female mosquito is more carnivorous, taking warm blood from

animals. According to National Geographic, humans are not the first choice for most

mosquitoes looking for a meal (National Geographic Society, 2015). In fact, female mosquitoes

love to feed from horses, cattle, and birds. In the case where they feed from humans is when

the female mosquito does not have access to their preferred blood meal, so their next option

would be humans. Now that doesn’t mean that there aren’t any mosquitoes that only prefer to
feed from humans. On the other hand there are some mosquitoes that prefer nothing but

humans to feed from such as the Aedes aegypti mosquito.

Before going more into a mosquito’s life expectancy, vector disease and control it is

important to learn about mosquito morphology. The Kimura manual explains that from the egg

stage to adulthood it takes the mosquito 11 to 16 days to mature. Of course, this is dependent

on ideal environmental conditions like warm temperatures, standing water, and nutrients for

growth. First the female mosquito must look for an ideal water source where the she will lay

her eggs. Usually it takes a few drops of standing water like that found in flower pots, buckets

or toys for the eggs to grow into adults. If she is from the Culix species more than likely the

female mosquito will lay her eggs close enough to each other forming what is called an egg raft.

However, the Aedes aegypti mosquito will lay individual eggs and spread them around. In fact,

the aegypti has been able to lay her eggs in dry environments where she senses water will

eventually build up allowing her offspring to grow. Hatching usually takes about two to three

days this is known as the larval stage as seen on figure 1

Figure 1

.
 At this point the larval mosquito looks like a little worm with a breathing tube attached

to it. Its main source of nutrition consists of organic matter found in the water source they are

growing from. The tube attached to their bodies allows them to come up to the surface and

catch some air. As a protective mechanism the larvae will sink down to the bottom of the water

source. In the final stage which is about four to 10 days after being hatched the larvae enters a

pupae stage. In this stage the pupae are not very active however they do rely on the air

breather tube to breath. This stage usually last about 48 hours and the pupae will hatch into an

adult size mosquito.

Adult mosquitoes usually grow to be about 0.125 to 0.75 inches long and weigh about

0.000088 oz (National Geographic Society, 2015). That means that they are about the size of a

paper clip. The Alameda County website gives a breakdown on all the mosquito genera native

to California. Of the thousands of mosquitoes that exist in the world 53 of these species are

native to the state of California and they include the Aedes, Anopheles, Culiseta, and Culex

Aedes. Invasive mosquitoes like the Aedes albopictus (2011) and the Aedes aegypti (2013) have

been detected in California in the last few years (Alameda County Mosquito Abatement District,

2018). Like all counties in California great efforts are being made in controlling not only these

invasive mosquitoes but all mosquitoes that pose a threat to human health. As previously

mentioned mosquitoes are responsible for causing disease like Chikungunya, Dengue, Eastern

equine encephalitis, Japanese encephalitis, La Crosse encephalitis, St. Louis encephalitis, West

Nile (WNV), Yellow fever, and Zika (CDC,2018). Mosquito bites are not all harmful as long as the

mosquito is not infected and carrying a virus like West Nile or Zika.
 West Nile is a virus that has been detected in a variety of birds like hawks and owls

causing illness and death to these bird’s species when in large numbers. The West Nile Virus

Transmission Cycle explains in detail how the virus comes to affect humans (CDC, 2017). As one

can see the culex mosquito is responsible for transmitting West Nile Virus to birds. When the

bird has been infected the virus, overload will increase significantly in such a short time in the

blood stream. When this occurs, and the infected bird gets bit by a female mosquito the non-

infected mosquito will pick up the virus. Within a week the mosquito will be able to transmit

the virus to other birds (CDC, 2017). When the Culex mosquitoes become infected and start to

bite mammals like humans and horses they can transmit this virus to them as well.

According to the West Nile website in from 2003 to 2017 there has been a total of 6,582

human fatalities caused by the virus in 2004 there was a total of 779 human deaths, 2005 there

was a total of 880 human fatalities and in 2014 there was 801. Figure 2 shows higher incidences

of WNV in these specific years compared to others. As one can see these vectors borne diseases

are a major health concern. In addition, Figure 2 also shows other mammalian fatalities

recorded since 2003. Studying the stable one can easily see that since 2003 there was been a

total of 21,952 dead birds due to the WNV. Figure 2 also shows that a total of 29,652 mosquito

samples with the virus were reported.

Figure 2

2003-2017 WNV ACTIVITY SUMMARY

Element 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Total
Human
779 880 278 380 445 112 111 158 479 379 801 782 442 553 6,582
cases 31(0)
(29) (19) (7) (21) (15) (4) (6) (9) (20) (15) (31) (53) (19) (44) (292)
(fatal)

Horses 12 540 456 58 28 32 18 19 15 22 13 03 03 03 21 1,223

Dead
96 3,232 3,046 1,446 1,396 2,569 515 416 688 1,644 1,251 2,442 1,349 1,352 510 21,952
birds
Mosquito
32 1,136 1,242 832 1,007 2,003 1,063 1,305 2,087 2849 2,528 3,340 3,329 3,528 3,371 29,652
samples
Sentinel
70 809 1,053 640 510 585 443 281 391 540 485 443 449 343 305 7,347
chickens
Squirrels - 49 48 32 26 32 10 24 24 23 03 03 03 03 03 276
1
There were 20 imported human cases. 2
There were 3 imported horse cases. 3
No longer monitored.
Obtained from: http://westnile.ca.gov/

In recent years, public health professionals and environmentalist have also noticed a rise

in Zika incidences in the United States. This virus is quite interesting and has been a recent

public health concern since its mutation in Brazil in the past few years. According to the CDC,

the Zika virus usually spreads by “the bite of an infected Aedes aegypti and Ae, albopictus

mosquito” (CDC, 2018). The Ae. aegypti mosquito is known to be an aggressive mosquito biting

human during the day and night. An infected human when carrying a child or becomes

pregnant after being bit by the infected mosquito has a high risk of transmitting the virus to the

fetus. In such case the virus will cause major health defects the fetus. Zika is known to cause

microcephaly in developing babies usually in the first trimester of development. In addition, the

virus can be transmitted sexually through the exchange of vaginal fluids. To prevent sexual

transmission of the virus the use of male/female condoms is highly advised by the CDC. As one

can see these are only two of the many diseases affecting humans due to bites of infected

mosquitoes in our area. To reduce morbidity and mortality from vector-borne diseases it is

crucial to control mosquito populations in our environment.

Mosquito surveillance and control is a fundamental part in making sure there is a

decrease in new incidences of diseases caused by infected mosquitoes. Some of the techniques

used to control mosquito population are: using EVS traps, dumping standing water from
buckets, flower pots, toys and pools, using natural enemies like mosquito fish (Gambusia

Affinis), spreading pesticides, spraying insecticides, setting up screens, bed nets, using

protective clothing and repellants (Kimura, 1994). These techniques have worked well in

controlling mosquito population as well as disease transmission. However, research has shown

that some mosquito species have develop resistance to some pesticides. In an article called,

Efficacy of an insecticide paint against insecticide susceptible and resistant mosquitoes - Part 1:

Laboratory evaluation by Mosquiera et al. the authors address this issue. According top the

article “the main malaria vector Anopheles gambiae and the urban pest nuisance Culex

quinquefasciatus are increasingly resistant to pyrethroids in many African countries” Mosquiera

et al., 2010). This goes to show that there is a high need for the development of stronger or

newer pesticides along with techniques that will help us combat disease caused by mosquitoes.

In this study, researchers added organophosphates (OPs), chlorpyrifos and diazinon,

and insect growth regulator (IGR) on paint that could be used to cover cement or wood walls in

homes. The idea of behind insecticide paint Inesfly 5A IGR is to kill mosquitoes after they have

taken a meal from a human and landed on the wall of their home to digest their food. The goal

was to try these pesticides on resistant mosquitoes. If this technique works insecticidal paints

could potentially be sold and used on the interior and exterior of homes all over the world. This

articles results showed that “high mortality rates were observed against laboratory strains of

the pest mosquito Cx. quinquefasciatus susceptible and resistant to insecticides” (Mosquiera,

2010). In other words, this insecticidal paint works and continues to do so for over 12 months.

This long term- killing technique may help control mosquito population and help reduce

morbidity and mortality due to vector-borne diseases. Today, one can buy insecticidal paint at
Lowes and Home Depot as a means of controlling mosquitoes and the diseases they transmit in

our environment.

In closing, mosquitoes are fascinating creatures and can adapt to harsh weather. In fact,

mosquitoes in any stage can become dormant when the environment is not favorable. Others

mosquito species like Cx. quinquefasciatus have become resistant to pesticides through time.

This has led to the develop new strategies such as insecticidal paint to help control mosquito

populations in our environment. This technique has proven to kill resistant mosquitoes in and

out side homes. This long-term technique will definitely help prevent future incidences of WNV

and Zika disease that cause morbidity and even mortality in not only humans but animals alike.
Reference

 National Geographic Society, 2018. Mosquitoes. Article obtained online at:

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/invertebrates/group/mosquitoes/
 Kimura, W., (1994). The Registered Environmental Health Specialist Examination Study
Manual. Volume 1, Pages U-28(2-4).
 Alameda County Staff, 2018. California Species. Alameda County Mosquito Abatement
District. Article obtained online at: https://www.mosquitoes.org/california-species
 CDC Staff, 2018. Prevent Mosquito Bites. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Article obtained online at: https://www.cdc.gov/features/stopmosquitoes/index.htm
 California West Nile Virus Website, 2018. Latest West Nile Virus Activity in California.
Statistics obtained from: http://westnile.ca.gov/
 CDC Staff, 2017. West Nile Virus & Dean Birds. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. Article obtained online from: https://www.cdc.gov/westnile/dead-
birds/index.html
 CDC Staff, 2018. Zika Virus: Prevention and Transmission. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention. Article obtained online from:
https://www.cdc.gov/zika/prevention/index.html
 Mosqueira, B., Duchon, S., Chandre, F., Hougard, JM., Carnevale, P., & Mas-Coma, S. 2010.
Efficacy of an Insecticide Paint Against Insecticide Susceptible and Resistant Mosquitoes - Part 1:
Laboratory Evaluation. Mosqueira et al. Malaria Journal 2010, 9:340
http://www.malariajournal.com/content/9/1/340