RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Use of bed-net continues to offer potential strategy for malaria prevention in endemic areas. Local communities are indispensable during design and implementation stages. METHODS: A cross-sectional study of 192 randomly selected inhabitants was carried out in malarious zone, Siahoo direstrict, Hormozgan Province, southern Iran. In addition, we monitored human landing periodicity of main malaria vectors and as well as self-protection of inhabitant in the study area for a period of one transmission season between April to October 2006. RESULTS: The biting activities were seen throughout the whole night for three malaria vectors, Anopheles fluviatilis, An. stephensi and An. dthali, and An. fluviatilis exhibiting bimodal peaks, the first at midnight (0:00-1:00) and the other before dawn (5:00-6:00 am) but the maximum biting activity of An. stephensi was occurred at second quarter of night (11:00-12:00 pm). The majority of interviewers (83.3%) knew that malaria was transmitted by mosquitoes and 70.3% of them stated that bed-net is the best control measures. Most subjects (62%) did not have a mosquito net. CONCLUSION: Study subjects were aware of an association between mosquito bite and malaria transmission. Health workers at different levels of the health care delivery system should disseminate relevant information about self-protection to help community members to be involved more in malaria control.
RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Many microorganisms in midgut of mosquito challenge with their host and also other pathogens present in midgut. The aim of this study was presence of non-pathogens microorganisms like fungal flora which may be crucial on interaction between vectors and pathogens. METHODS: Different populations of Anopheles stephensi were reared in insectary and objected to determine fungal flora in their midguts. The midgut paunch of mosquito adults and larvae as well as breading water and larval food samples transferred on Subaru-dextrose agar, in order to detect the environment fungus. RESULTS: Although four fungi, Aspergillus, Rhizopus, Geotrichum and Sacharomyces were found in the food and water, but only Aspiragilus observed in the midgut of larvae. No fungus was found in the midgut of adults. This is the first report on fungal flora in the midgut of the adults and larvae of An. stephensi and possible stadial transmission of fungi from immature stages to adults. CONCLUSION: The midgut environment of adults is not compatible for survivorship of fungi but the larval midgut may contain few fungi as a host or even pathogen.
