Campus Units
Entomology
Document Type
Article
Publication Version
Published Version
Publication Date
2019
Journal or Book Title
Scientific Reports
Volume
9
First Page
6637
DOI
10.1038/s41598-019-43246-y
Abstract
West Nile virus (WNV) has become the most epidemiologically important mosquito-borne disease in the United States, causing ~50,000 cases since its introduction in 1999. Transmitted primarily by Culex species, WNV transmission requires the complex interplay between bird reservoirs and mosquito vectors, with human cases the result of epizootic spillover. To better understand the intrinsic factors that drive these interactions, we have compiled infection data from sentinel chickens, mosquito vectors, and human cases in Iowa over a 15 year period (2002–2016) to better understand the spatial and temporal components that drive WNV transmission. Supplementing these findings with mosquito abundance, distribution, and host preferences data, we provide strong support that Culex tarsalis is the most important vector of human WNV infections in the region. Together, our analysis provides new insights into WNV infection patterns in multiple hosts and highlights the importance of long-term surveillance to understand the dynamics of mosquito-borne-disease transmission.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright Owner
The Authors
Copyright Date
2019
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Dunphy, Brendan M.; Kovach, Kristofer B.; Gehrke, Ella J.; Field, Eleanor N.; Rowley, Wayne E.; Bartholomay, Lyric C.; and Smith, Ryan C., "Long-term surveillance defines spatial and temporal patterns implicating Culex tarsalis as the primary vector of West Nile virus" (2019). Entomology Publications. 554.
https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/ent_pubs/554
Included in
Diseases Commons, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons, Entomology Commons, Spatial Science Commons
Comments
This article is published as Dunphy, B.M., Kovach, K.B., Gehrke, E.J. et al. Long-term surveillance defines spatial and temporal patterns implicating Culex tarsalis as the primary vector of West Nile virus. Sci Rep 9, 6637 (2019). doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-43246-y.