Seropozitifity of Anti-Echinococcus granulosus in Patients with of Clinical Prediagnosis Cystic Echinococcosis at Kafkas University Health Research and Application Hospital

Objective: Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a common zoonotic disease in the world, which is caused by the larval form of Echinococcus granulosus settling in various organs in both animals and humans. It is common in livestock breeding areas and rural areas. This study was conducted to determine anti-E. granulosus seropositivity in patients with clinical pre-diagnosis/suspected CE in Kafkas University Health Research and Application Hospital in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey. Methods: Study material; between January 2018 and December 2020, 498 blood samples were sent to the Parasitology Laboratory from patients with clinical pre-diagnosis of CE, who applied to Kafkas University Health Research and Application Hospital for three years. The obtained serum samples were analyzed by indirect hemagglutination method. Results: Anti-Echinococcus granulosus antibodies were detected in 74 (14.9%) of 498 patients with clinical pre-diagnosis of hydatid cyst. Of the positive cases, 53 (71.6%) were observed in women, and 21 (28.4%) in men (p<0.05). Anti-E. granulosus antibodies were most commonly detected in the 16-30 age group (32.9%) (p<0.05), and 19.3% in the 16-60 age group. Conclusion: Although the study data do not cover the entire Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey, it has been concluded that KE maintains its importance as a public health problem in the region.

Landmark-based geometric morphometric analysis of wing size and wing shape among Aedes albopictus (Skuse, 1894) populations in Turkey.

Aedes albopictus (Skuse, 1894) has a widespread distribution that includes both temperate and tropical climates. It is a potential vector of several important worldwide arboviruses, including chikungunya, zika, and dengue, and its geographical distribution expands rapidly. Despite its vectorial importance, the bioecological features of this species in newly established environments are still not very well known. Thus, this study investigated phenotypic variations among Ae. albopictus populations from different regions in Turkey. This is the first comparative morphological study of Ae. albopictus populations in Turkey. The procrustes distances phenogram derived from wing data indicates that the shape differences among some populations and the population from the Aegean coast differ from the Black Sea populations. Size differences were also detected between some populations.

Potential Mosquito Vectors of Dirofilaria immitis and Dirofilaira repens (Spirurida: Onchocercidae) in Aras Valley, Turkey.

Dirofilaria immitis (Leidy, 1856) and Dirofilaria repens (Railliet & Henry, 1911) are mosquito-borne filarial nematodes that primarily affect dogs, causing heartworm disease and subcutaneous dirofilariosis. The canine heartworm is reported in different provinces in Turkey. However, studies about the transmitting mosquito species are limited. Hence, this study aimed to investigate potential vectors of D. immitis and D. repens in Aras Valley, Turkey. In total, 17,995 female mosquitoes were collected from eight villages during three mosquito seasons (2012-2014) in Aras Valley, located in north-eastern Turkey. A total of 1,054 DNA pools (527 abdomen and 527 head-thorax) were tested with Dirofilaria primers by multiplex-polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Aedes caspius was the most abundant species in collection sites with 90%; this was followed by Culex theileri Theobald, 1903 (Diptera: Culicidae) (7.31%), Anopheles maculipennis Meigen 1818 (Diptera: Culicidae) (1.28%), Culex pipiens Linnaeus, 1758 (Diptera: Culicidae) (0.43%), (Anopheles) hyrcanus (Pallas, 1771) (Diptera: Culicidae) (0.37%), Aedes vexans (Meigen, 1830) (Diptera: Culicidae) (0.25%), and Culiseta annulata Schrank, 1776 (Diptera:Culicidae) (0.02%). Dirofilaria immitis and D. repens were detected in mosquito pools from five villages. The total Dirofilaria spp. estimated infection rate was 1.33%. The highest estimated infection rate was found in Ae. vexans (6.66%) and the lowest was in Ae. caspius (1.26%). The results show that An. maculipennis sl, Ae. caspius, Ae. vexans, Cx. theileri and Cx. pipiens are potential vectors of D. immitis and D. repens with DNA in head-thorax pools; An. hyrcanus is also a likely vector, but Dirofilaria DNA was found only in abdomen pools for the study area. This study revealed new potential vector species for D. immitis. Mosquitoes with natural infections of D. repens were reported for the first time in Turkey.

Biting activity of mosquito species (Diptera: Culicidae) in the Turkey-Armenia border area, Ararat Valley, Turkey.

During nine consecutive nights in July 2007 (from 18:15-05:45 h), mosquitoes landing-biting on humans were collected outdoors and indoors at the Turkey-Armenia border. A total of 1005 females were collected consisting of nine species. The dominant species was Aedes dorsalis (Meigen) (47.5% of total catch), followed by Anopheles hyrcanus (Pallas) (22.9%), Culex theileri (Theobald) (9.3%),Ae. vexans (Meigen) (6.6%), Ae. caspius (Pallas) (4.9%),Anopheles maculipennis s.l. (Meigen) (3.1%), Culex territans (Walker) (2.8%), Coquillettidia richiardii (Ficalbi) (1.6%), and Cx. pipiens L. (1.5%). The biting rate outdoors (15.1 mosquitoes/human/h) was greater than indoors (3.4 mosquitoes/human/h). The landing-biting of Ae. dorsalis peaked at dusk (19:15-19:45 h) and dawn (04:15-04:45 h). Ae. vexans activity increased soon after dark (20:15-20:45 h) and reached a peak at dawn (04:15-04:45 h). Maximum biting activity of An. hyrcanus and Cx. theileri occurred during the first sampling interval after dusk (20:15-20:45 h). A large number of An. maculipennis s.l. adults were collected during the second half of the night. We believe that these findings will contribute to decisions on the timing of mosquito control in Ararat Valley.