Combining Public Health Education and Disease Ecology Research: Using Citizen Science to Assess Chagas Disease Entomological Risk in Texas
Combining Public Health Education and Disease Ecology Research: Using Citizen Science to Assess Chagas Disease Entomological Risk in Texas
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DOI：
10.1371/journal.pntd.0004235
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发表时间：
2015-12-01
影响因子：
3.8
通讯作者：
Hamer, Sarah A.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Curtis-Robles, Rachel;Wozniak, Edward J.;Hamer, Sarah A.
恰加斯病是一种人畜共患寄生虫病，在整个美洲都有详细记录，主要由锥蝽“吻虫”媒介传播。为了表彰拉丁美洲基于社区参与的病媒控制项目的成功历史，我们采用公民科学方法，对德克萨斯州吻虫的地理分布、季节性活动和克氏锥虫感染流行率获得了新的见解，同时向公众提供了关于恰加斯病的信息。方法/主要发现我们接受了2013-2014年在德克萨斯州和其他州公众遇到的接吻虫的提交，同时提供了关于恰加斯病的教育文献。在实验室里，接吻虫被确定了种类，被解剖，并被检测是否感染了克氏锥虫。共有7个物种共1980个，其中以T. gerstaeckeri和T. sanguisuga数量最多（占85.7%）。三聚氰胺最常从狗窝和室外庭院收集；总体而言，10.5%的triatomines是从家中收集的。Triatomines来自德克萨斯州各地，包括许多以前不知道有接吻虫的县。在4月至10月期间主要捕获吻虫，6月至7月是活动高峰。在夏季（6月至8月），我们的专用账户收到的关于接吻虫的电子邮件比一年中其他时间更频繁。我们在63.3%的被试细菌中检出克氏锥虫。结论/意义公民科学是获取恰加斯病寄生虫媒介蚊的分布、物候和感染流行度数据的有效途径，同时对公众和医学界进行教育。
BackgroundChagas disease is a zoonotic parasitic disease well-documented throughout the Americas and transmitted primarily by triatomine 'kissing bug' vectors. In acknowledgment of the successful history of vector control programs based on community participation across Latin America, we used a citizen science approach to gain novel insight into the geographic distribution, seasonal activity, and Trypanosoma cruzi infection prevalence of kissing bugs in Texas while empowering the public with information about Chagas disease.Methodology/Principal FindingsWe accepted submissions of kissing bugs encountered by the public in Texas and other states from 2013-2014 while providing educational literature about Chagas disease. In the laboratory, kissing bugs were identified to species, dissected, and tested for T. cruzi infection. A total of 1,980 triatomines were submitted to the program comprised of at least seven species, of which T. gerstaeckeri and T. sanguisuga were the most abundant (85.7% of submissions). Triatomines were most commonly collected from dog kennels and outdoor patios; Overall, 10.5% of triatomines were collected from inside the home. Triatomines were submitted from across Texas, including many counties which were not previously known to harbor kissing bugs. Kissing bugs were captured primarily throughout April-October, and peak activity occurred in June-July. Emails to our dedicated account regarding kissing bugs were more frequent in the summer months (June-August) than the rest of the year. We detected T. cruzi in 63.3% of tested bugs.Conclusions/SignificanceCitizen science is an efficient approach for generating data on the distribution, phenology, and infection prevalence of kissing bugs-vectors of the Chagas disease parasite-while educating the public and medical community.