Papers by Mariana Manteca Acosta
Journal of Medical Entomology
Leishmaniases are a global health problem and in Argentina are considered emerging diseases. The ... more Leishmaniases are a global health problem and in Argentina are considered emerging diseases. The new transmission scenarios of tegumentary leishmaniasis are especially important given that large areas of forest are being transformed into rural and urban systems. The aim of this study was to analyze the impact of the construction of a large public building and a neighborhood on the assemblage of Phlebotominae in a rural area with forest remnants and to correlate the changes observed in the species assemblage with characteristics of the environment. Entomological surveys with light traps were conducted on the construction campus in the northeastern region of Argentina at six sites representing different environmental situations. Structural environmental characteristics and meteorological conditions were recorded and analyzed. At least 16 species of Phlebotominae sand flies were collected, the most prevalent being Nyssomyia whitmani (Antunes & Coutinho), followed by the genus Brumptomy...
Revista do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo
The objective of this study was to evaluate the presence of Lutzomyia longipalpis in the Argentin... more The objective of this study was to evaluate the presence of Lutzomyia longipalpis in the Argentine city of Concordia, in the province of Entre Rios, without record of this species despite previous samplings, but with canine cases of visceral leishmaniasis and Lu. longipalpis reports both, from Northern Argentine localities and from the city of Salto, Uruguay, located just across the river and the international border. This study confirms the presence of Lu. longipalpis and Nyssomyia whitmani, related to the risk of visceral and tegumentary leishmaniasis, respectively, in Concordia-Entre Rios. The presence of Lu. longipalpis confirms the ongoing dispersal along the Uruguay river basin. The presence of these species in the study area alerts about the risk of transmission of Leishmania spp.
Acta Tropica, 2015
Leishmania infantum is the etiological agent of the Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) disease in Americ... more Leishmania infantum is the etiological agent of the Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) disease in America, with Lutzomyia longipalpis phlebotomine sandflies as its proven vectors in Argentina, and infected dogs as its main urban reservoir. In Puerto Iguazú City (Misiones province, Argentina), human and canine cases of VL were recorded. Additionally, in the rural area known as "2000 Hectáreas", less than 10km away from the city, several human cases of Tegumentary Leishmaniasis (TL) were registered determining an endemic area with Leishmania braziliensis as the etiological agent. Because of this, several phlebotomine captures were done in this site showing that Nyssomyia whitmani is the most abundant sandfly followed by Migonemyia migonei. In this study, three of the sandflies captured were found infected whit L. infantum parasites, detected by PCR and sequencing. Two of them were N. whitmani and the other one was a M. migonei specimen, being this the first report of L. infantum natural infection for Argentina in these sandfly species. N. whitmani is the main vector of L. braziliensis in this area, and M. migonei has been suggested as a putative vector in other locations where human and canine cases of VL where reported with L. longipalpis apparently absent. In this context, we consider necessary further studies that could define the role of M. migonei and N. whitmani as specific or permissive vectors of L. infantum, their vectorial competence and capacity, and their actual role in the transmission of both Tegumentary and Visceral Leishmaniasis in the study area.
PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 2015
The principal objective of this study was to assess a modeling approach to Lu. longipalpis distri... more The principal objective of this study was to assess a modeling approach to Lu. longipalpis distribution in an urban scenario, discriminating micro-scale landscape variables at microhabitat and macrohabitat scales and the presence from the abundance of the vector. For this objective, we studied vectors and domestic reservoirs and evaluated different environmental variables simultaneously, so we constructed a set of 13 models to account for microhabitats, macro-habitats and mixed-habitats. We captured a total of 853 sandflies, of which 98.35% were Lu. longipalpis. We sampled a total of 197 dogs; 177 of which were associated with households where insects were sampled. Positive rK39 dogs represented 16.75% of the total, of which 47% were asymptomatic. Distance to the border of the city and high to medium density vegetation cover ended to be the explanatory variables, all positive, for the presence of sandflies in the city. All variables in the abundance model ended to be explanatory, trees around the trap, distance to the stream and its quadratic, being the last one the only one with negative coefficient indicating that the maximum abundance was associated with medium values of distance to the stream. The spatial distribution of dogs infected with L. infantum showed a heterogeneous pattern throughout the city; however, we could not confirm an association of the distribution with the variables assessed. In relation to Lu. longipalpis distribution, the strategy to discriminate the micro-spatial scales at which the environmental variables were recorded allowed us to associate presence with macrohabitat variables and abundance with microhabitat and macrohabitat variables. Based on the variables associated with Lu. longipalpis, the model will be validated in other cities and environmental surveillance, and control interventions will be proposed and evaluated in the microscale level and integrated with socio-cultural approaches and programmatic and village (mesoscale) strategies.
Revista do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo, 2013
SUMMARY The first Argentinian autochthonous human case of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) was confirm... more SUMMARY The first Argentinian autochthonous human case of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) was confirmed in Posadas (Misiones) in 2006. Since then, the disease has increased its incidence and geographical distribution. In the 2006-2012 period, 107 human cases were detected (11 deaths). The presence of Lutzomyia longipalpis was detected in peridomiciles in Puerto Iguazú urban area in 2010; some of these findings were associated with households where cases of canine VL had already been reported. The objective of this study was to ascertain the abundance and spatial distribution of Lu. longipalpis in Puerto Iguazú City, on the Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay border. Lu. longipalpis proved to be exclusively urban and was found in 31% of the households sampled (n = 53), 67% of which belonged to areas of low abundance, 20% to areas of moderate abundance and 13% to areas of high abundance. Nyssomyia whitmani was the only species found both in urban and peri-urban environments, and Migonemyia migonei ...
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Papers by Mariana Manteca Acosta