Natural Variation And Genetic Basis Of Dengue Virus Transmission Rate In Australian Mosquitoes
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$680,088.00
Summary
Dengue fever outbreaks occur in Australia when infected travelers enter the country and are bitten by local mosquitoes. Here we examine the degree of genetic compatibility between mosquitoes and incoming dengue viruses that may affect disease risk for humans. We will identify the mosquito genes that determine the insect’s capacity to transmit dengue virus and develop a geographic map of transmissibility for a range of different dengue strains across Australian populations of the insect.
Release The Sterile Males: A New Direction For Mosquito Population Control Technologies
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,110,112.00
Summary
With over 40% of humans at risk from mosquito-borne disease, new environmentally friendly mosquito control tools are required. We’ve developed a novel sterile male population suppression technology – using neither radiation nor genetic modification – to produce sterile adult male mosquitoes from both male and female larvae. We will show that exposing mosquito larvae to specific RNA molecules can produce fit sterile males adult mosquitoes that can crash mosquito populations in large cage trials
Dynamics Of Malaria Transmission Stages In Host And Vector: Bottlenecks And Their Impact Transmission And Parasite Population Diversity
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$780,554.00
Summary
The adoption of malaria elimination as the long-term goal requires malaria programs to shift their focus from controlling the burden of malaria disease & deaths to the interruption of transmission itself. This will be impossible without an improved understanding of the processes involved and novel tools directly targeting transmission. We therefore plan to conduct an in-depth examination of bottlenecks to malaria transmission in Papua New Guinea, the country with the highest malaria burden in ou ....The adoption of malaria elimination as the long-term goal requires malaria programs to shift their focus from controlling the burden of malaria disease & deaths to the interruption of transmission itself. This will be impossible without an improved understanding of the processes involved and novel tools directly targeting transmission. We therefore plan to conduct an in-depth examination of bottlenecks to malaria transmission in Papua New Guinea, the country with the highest malaria burden in our region.Read moreRead less
Assessing The Impact Of Climate Change On The Transmission Of Mosquito-borne Diseases In Australia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$346,689.00
Summary
Global climate change has potentially serious effects on the transmission of mosquito-borne diseases (MBDs). Bayesian spatiotemporal models will be developed to explore the underlying mechanisms of the current distribution of MBDs and to forecast future changes in pattern of these diseases. The model will be useful in examining where and when MBDs are likely to occur and how the future MBDs control strategies and prevention efforts need to be applied and strengthened in Australia.
Dissecting The Molecular Basis For Cell Movement And Midgut Colonisation In The Insect Stage Parasite - The Ookinete
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$48,365.00
Summary
Malaria parasites are a leading cause of infant mortality. Despite their global impact, no vaccine exists to prevent malaria disease and resistance to current drugs is prevalent. Cell movement is an essential process for parasite development yet its potential as a drug target remains unexplored. I seek to shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying movement, focused on the motile insect stages. Understanding gained here will support the broader goal to identify targets for transmission-blo ....Malaria parasites are a leading cause of infant mortality. Despite their global impact, no vaccine exists to prevent malaria disease and resistance to current drugs is prevalent. Cell movement is an essential process for parasite development yet its potential as a drug target remains unexplored. I seek to shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying movement, focused on the motile insect stages. Understanding gained here will support the broader goal to identify targets for transmission-blocking development.Read moreRead less
New Vectors, New Diseases: Understanding The Risk Of Chikungunya Transmission In Australia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$522,580.00
Summary
Chikungunya is a febrile illness that can lead to chronic, debilitating joint pain in adults and severe neurological complications in children. Introductions of this virus into Australia have steadily increased in recent years. We will estimate the risk of chikungunya transmission in Australia now and into the future, and deliver the results to public health authorities to reduce the risk of outbreaks in Australia.
Buruli ulcer (BU) is a destructive skin and soft tissue infection that can cause permanent deformity. Australian native possums carry in their guts the bacteria that causes BU and mosquitoes spread BU to people from areas contaminated by possum faeces. A targeted intervention based on screening possum faeces followed by control of mosquitoes in areas where possums and mosquitoes are shown to carry the bacteria will be trialed here, giving public health officials a means to stop this disease.
Japanese Encephalitis Virus In Northern Australia And Papua New Guinea:its Ecology And Risk To Australia.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$292,045.00
Summary
Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus is a mosquito-transmitted virus of Asia. Infection causes clinical disease in about 1 in 50 people infected, and of these, about 25% will die from a fatal encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), and a further 50% will have lifelong severe disabilities. There are over 50,000 cases annually in Asia, with about 12,000 fatalities. However, many more cases may go unrecognised. The virus normally circulates between mosquitoes and water birds and between mosquitoes an ....Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus is a mosquito-transmitted virus of Asia. Infection causes clinical disease in about 1 in 50 people infected, and of these, about 25% will die from a fatal encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), and a further 50% will have lifelong severe disabilities. There are over 50,000 cases annually in Asia, with about 12,000 fatalities. However, many more cases may go unrecognised. The virus normally circulates between mosquitoes and water birds and between mosquitoes and pigs. The World Health Organization has recognised JE as one of the most important mosquito-borne viruses because of its propensity to spread and to colonise new areas. The virus first appeared in the Torres Strait of northern Australia in 1995, causing three clinical cases of whom 2 died. This was unexpected as the nearest known focus of virus activity was in Bali, over 3000km away. The virus returned again in 1998, with a further case in the Torres Strait and the first case to occur on mainland Australia in Cape York. Both of these patients recovered. We have shown that the virus is established in Papua New Guinea (PNG), where it is spreading rapidly, and our results suggest that PNG was the source of the virus causing the outbreaks in 1995 and 1998. This project is aimed at finding out more about JE virus in PNG, particularly as it relates to spread into northern Australia. The project also seeks to investigate the potential mosquito and animal hosts in Australia that might be involved if the virus becomes established in our wildlife in Cape York. Australia is already known to have suitable mosquito vector species and suitable animal hosts in water birds and feral pigs, but the ecology is not yet understood. Thus the overall aim is to provide information on which a sound risk assessment can be based.Read moreRead less
Japanese Encephalitis Virus In Australasia: Molecular Studies Of Isolates And Consequences Of Immunisation.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$212,036.00
Summary
Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus is a mosquito-transmitted virus of Asia. Infection causes clinical disease in about 1 in 50 people infected, and of these, about 25% will die from a fatal encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), and a further 50% will have lifelong severe disabilities. There are over 50,000 cases annually in Asia, with about 12,000 fatalities.The virus normally circulates between mosquitoes and water birds and between mosquitoes and pigs. The World Health Organization has recog ....Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus is a mosquito-transmitted virus of Asia. Infection causes clinical disease in about 1 in 50 people infected, and of these, about 25% will die from a fatal encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), and a further 50% will have lifelong severe disabilities. There are over 50,000 cases annually in Asia, with about 12,000 fatalities.The virus normally circulates between mosquitoes and water birds and between mosquitoes and pigs. The World Health Organization has recognised JE as one of the most important mosquito-borne viruses because of its propensity to spread and to colonise new areas. The virus first appeared in northern Australia in the Torres Strait in 1995, causing three clinical cases of whom 2 died, and returned again in 1998, with a further case in the Torres Strait and the first case to occur on mainland Australia in Cape York. Both of these patients recovered. The virus returned again to the Torres Strait in 2000, but so far without causing human disease. We have shown that the virus is established in Papua New Guinea (PNG), where it is spreading rapidly, and our results suggest that PNG was the source of the virus causing the outbreaks in 1995 and 1998. It is believed that JE virus will almost certainly become established in Australia within the next few years. The aims of this project are to explore the consequences of JE becoming established and specifically: (a) the use of inactivated JE vaccine to protect at-risk populations and whether the vaccine will provide sufficient protection or whether it will lead to enhanced infection with indigenous flaviviruses such as Murray Valley encephalitis virus; and (b) the possibility of emergence of genetic variants with increased transmissibility, virulence, and altered neutralisation epitopes.Read moreRead less
Novel Use Of Fungal Entomopathogens For Sustainable Control Of Mosquito-borne Viruses
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$605,993.00
Summary
Mosquito-born viruses such as Dengue, Ross River and Barmah Forest are increasing in regional significance. At a broader scale, an estimated 2.5 billion people live in areas at risk of epidemic Dengue transmission. Chemical insecticides are the mainstay of current mosquito control throughout many parts of the world. However, problems of insecticide resistance, environmental contamination and risks to human health, mean that chemical pesticides have not provided a universal solution, either as ou ....Mosquito-born viruses such as Dengue, Ross River and Barmah Forest are increasing in regional significance. At a broader scale, an estimated 2.5 billion people live in areas at risk of epidemic Dengue transmission. Chemical insecticides are the mainstay of current mosquito control throughout many parts of the world. However, problems of insecticide resistance, environmental contamination and risks to human health, mean that chemical pesticides have not provided a universal solution, either as outdoor sprays, residual house sprays or as insecticide treated nets. This creates a pressing need for practical alternatives. Building on approaches and technologies developed for control of locusts in Australia and Africa, we have recently discovered that the ability of mosquitoes to transmit malaria can be substantially reduced with insect fungal pathogens used as biological pesticides. We found that exposure to biopesticide-treated surfaces reduced the number of mosquitoes able to transmit malaria 80-fold. Other supporting data from semi-field trials confirm the feasibility of infecting mosquitoes under real field conditions. Together, these results represent a significant advance in the development of a cheap and sustainable biological alternative to chemical insecticides for disease control. We now wish to extend this research to explore the potential for use of fungal pathogens in control of mosquito-borne viruses. Preliminary studies already confirm that we can infect the key mosquito species responsible for transmitting Dengue. The aim of the current project is to conduct a more comprehensive evaluation of a wider range of fungal isolates to identify strains with the greatest potential to stop transmission of mosquito-borne viruses. The longer term goal is to translate this research into a practical product. Such a product would offer a cheap, environmentally friendly disease control measure, with reduced potential for resistance evolution.Read moreRead less