ArticleParasites & vectors2024
Entomological survey of sibling species in the Anopheles funestus group in Tanzania confirms the role of Anopheles parensis as a secondary malaria vector.
Article in Parasites & vectors, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed.
- Updating Anopheles funestus group members in Burkina Faso: species distribution and contribution to malaria transmission.Malaria journal · 2026Article
- Microsatellite analysis of genetic differentiation among populations of the malaria vector Anopheles funestus across mainland Tanzania reveals contrasted patterns of geographic isolation and gene flow.Parasites & vectors · 2026Article
- Article
- Strategies and approaches to vector control effectiveness toward the elimination of malaria in mainland Tanzania: An implementation case study analysis.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- A new assay for molecular identification of Anopheles squamosus (Diptera: Culicidae) using internal transcribed spacer 2.Malaria journal · 2025Article
- Early evening outdoor biting by malaria-infected Anopheles arabiensis vectors threatens malaria elimination efforts in Zanzibar.Malaria journal · 2025Article
- Insights into the biology and insecticide susceptibility of the secondary malaria vector Anopheles parensis in an area with long-term use of insecticide-treated nets in northwestern Tanzania.Parasites & vectors · 2024Article
- Host Preferences and Impact of Climate on Blood Feeding inTropical medicine and infectious disease · 2024Article
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Abstract
backgroundMalaria transmission in Tanzania is driven by mosquitoes of the Anopheles gambiae complex and Anopheles funestus group. The latter includes An. funestus s.s., an anthropophilic vector, which is now strongly resistant to public health insecticides, and several sibling species, which remain largely understudied despite their potential as secondary vectors. This paper provides the initial results of a cross-country study of the species composition, distribution and malaria transmission potential of members of the Anopheles funestus group in Tanzania.
methodsMosquitoes were collected inside homes in 12 regions across Tanzania between 2018 and 2022 using Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) light traps and Prokopack aspirators. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays targeting the noncoding internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) and 18S ribosomal DNA (18S rDNA) were used to identify sibling species in the An. funestus group and presence of Plasmodium infections, respectively. Where DNA fragments failed to amplify during PCR, we sequenced the ITS2 region to identify any polymorphisms.
resultsThe following sibling species of the An. funestus group were found across Tanzania: An. funestus s.s. (50.3%), An. parensis (11.4%), An. rivulorum (1.1%), An. leesoni (0.3%). Sequencing of the ITS2 region in the nonamplified samples showed that polymorphisms at the priming sites of standard species-specific primers obstructed PCR amplification, although the ITS2 sequences closely matched those of An. funestus s.s., barring these polymorphisms. Of the 914 samples tested for Plasmodium infections, 11 An. funestus s.s. (1.2%), and 2 An. parensis (0.2%) individuals were confirmed positive for P. falciparum. The highest malaria transmission intensities [entomological inoculation rate (EIR)] contributed by the Funestus group were in the north-western region [108.3 infectious bites/person/year (ib/p/y)] and the south-eastern region (72.2 ib/p/y).
conclusionsWhereas An. funestus s.s. is the dominant malaria vector in the Funestus group in Tanzania, this survey confirms the occurrence of Plasmodium-infected An. parensis, an observation previously made in at least two other occasions in the country. The findings indicate the need to better understand the ecology and vectorial capacity of this and other secondary malaria vectors in the region to improve malaria control.
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