University of Florida (UF) scientists recently published a paper in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, which investigates the ability of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes to transmit the emergent Asian and Indian Ocean strains of the Chikungunya Virus.
The virus was transmitted in Florida in 2014.
The researchers measured mosquito infection and transmission rates of the virus in Florida, and compared those findings to baseline rates from the Dominican Republic, which is associated with numerous human cases.
Barry Alto, an associate professor of entomology at the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, led the project.
“Transmission of chikungunya virus in the U.S. is a major public health concern,” Alto said. “These are emergent strains that are associated with expanding geographic range, and an increase in the number of human cases.”
The Indian Ocean strain of the virus triggered an outbreak of approximately 1.5 million human cases in the Indian Ocean region from 2004 to 2006. Scientists first identified the Asian strain in in 2013 on the island of St. Martin in the Caribbean. The strain then spread throughout the Americas.
Alto said that the team’s findings can be used in risk assessment by researchers modeling chikungunya transmission. The paper also serves as a warning to the public about the illness.
To avoid the disease, researchers recommend wearing protective clothing when outdoors, removing containers of standing water and wearing insect repellent, preferably containing DEET.