Disease vector

In epidemiology, a disease vector is any living agent that carries and transmits an infectious pathogen such as a parasite or microbe, to another living organism. Agents regarded as vectors are mostly blood-sucking ( hematophagous) arthropods such as mosquitoes. The first major discovery of a disease vector came from Ronald Ross in 1897, who discovered the malaria pathogen when he dissected the stomach tissue of a mosquito.

Arthropods

Arthropods form a major group of pathogen vectors with mosquitoes, flies, sand flies, lice, fleas, ticks, and mites transmitting a huge number of pathogens. Many such vectors are haematophagous, which feed on blood at some or all stages of their lives. When the insects and ticks feed on blood, the pathogen enters the blood stream of the host. This can happen in different ways.

The '' Anopheles'' mosquito, a vector for malaria, filariasis, and various arthropod-borne-viruses ( arboviruses), inserts its delicate mouthpart under the skin and feeds on its host's blood. The parasites the mosquito carries are usually located in its salivary glands (mosquito saliva contains a cocktail of proteins that facilitate blood feeding by anaesthetizing the bite site, preventing blood clotting and modulating the host immune system among other things). Therefore, the parasites are transmitted directly into the host's blood stream. Pool feeders such as the sand fly, tsetse and black fly, vectors for pathogens causing leishmaniasis, African trypanosomiasis and onchocerciasis respectively, will chew a well in the host's skin, forming a small pool of blood from which they feed. ''Leishmania'' and trypanosome parasites then infect the host through the saliva of the sandfly or tsetse, respectively. Onchocerca force their own way out of the insect's head into the pool of blood.

Triatomine bugs are responsible for the transmission of a trypanosome, '' Trypanosoma cruzi'', which causes Chagas disease. The Triatomine bugs defecate during feeding and the excrement contains the parasites, which are accidentally smeared into the open wound by the host responding to pain and irritation from the bite.

There are several species of Thrips that act as vectors for over 20 viruses, especially Tospoviruses, and cause all sorts of plant diseases.

Plants and fungi

Some plants and fungi act as vectors for various pathogens. For example, the big-vein disease of lettuce was long thought to be caused by a member of the fungal division Chytridiomycota, namely '' Olpidium brassicae''. Eventually, however, the disease was shown to be viral. Later it transpired that the virus was transmitted by the zoospores of the fungus and also survived in the resting spores. Since then, many other fungi in Chytridiomycota have been shown to vector plant viruses.

Many plant pests that seriously damage important crops depend on other plants, often weeds, to harbour or vector them; the distinction is not always clear. In the case of '' Puccinia graminis'' for example, '' Berberis'' and related genera act as alternate hosts in a cycle of infection of grain.

More directly, when they twine from one plant to another, parasitic plants such as ''Cuscuta'' and '' Cassytha'' have been shown to convey phytoplasmal and viral diseases between plants.

Mammals

Rabies is transmitted through exposure to the saliva or brain tissue of an infected animal. Any warm-blooded animal can carry rabies, but the most common vectors are dogs, skunks, raccoons, and bats.

Vector-borne zoonotic disease and human activity

Several articles, recent to early 2014, warn that human activities are spreading vector-borne zoonotic diseases. Several articles published in the medical journal ''The Lancet'', discussed how rapid changes in land use, trade globalization, climate change and "social upheaval" are causing a resurgence in zoonotic disease across the world. Displacement due to conflicts, migration, or population movements can create situations where people are more exposed to disease vectors. Additionally, human activities such as deforestation, agricultural expansion, urbanization, and increased trade and travel, are creating environments where vectors can thrive and spread diseases to humans more easily. Rising temperatures due to climate change create more favorable conditions for mosquitoes to expand their ranges and increase their populations. This can lead to higher rates of disease transmission in areas where these diseases were previously uncommon or nonexistent and the emergence of new diseases.

Examples of vector-borne zoonotic diseases include:
* Lyme disease: Caused by the bacterium ''Borrelia burgdorferi'', it is transmitted to humans by infected black-legged ticks, often found in wooded or grassy areas.
* Plague: Caused by the bacterium ''Yersinia pestis'', it is primarily transmitted by fleas that infest rodents. The disease has had significant historical impacts, including the Black Death.
* West Nile virus: Transmitted by mosquitoes, it causes symptoms ranging from mild flu-like illness to severe neurological diseases, including encephalitis.

Several factors influence the incidence of vector-borne diseases, including environmental conditions, animal hosts, and the movement of people. The expansion of human settlements into previously undisturbed areas creates new habitats for vectors and animals that are potential hosts. Vector-borne zoonotic diseases are transmitted by a variety of vectors, including arthropods (mosquitoes, ticks, fleas) and rodents, with humans often acting as incidental hosts.

Humans can act as mechanical vectors for some diseases, such as '' Tobacco mosaic virus. TMV is a single-stranded RNA virus spread spread through physical contact. Humans'' physically transmit the virus with their hands or tools from plant to plant. The concept of humans acting as a vector for TMV requires understanding the transmission dynamics and how human activity can play a role in spreading the virus among plants. Humans do not usually act as primary vectors for zoonotic diseases; however, they contribute to indirect transmission via human travel or trade aiding the spread of vector-borne diseases.

Control and prevention

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that control and prevention of vector-borne diseases are emphasizing "Integrated Vector Management (IVM)", which is an approach that looks at the links between health and environment, optimizing benefits to both.

In April 2014, WHO launched a campaign called "Small bite, big threat" to educate people about vector-borne illnesses. WHO issued reports indicating that vector-borne illnesses affect poor people, especially people living in areas that do not have adequate levels of sanitation, drinking water and housing. It is estimated that over 80% of the world's population resides in areas under threat of at least one vector borne disease.

See also

* Airborne disease
* Asymptomatic carrier
* Fomite
* Globalization and disease
* Insect vectors of human pathogens
* Insect vectors of plant pathogens
* VectorBase: genomic database of invertebrate vectors of human pathogens
* List of diseases caused by insects
* Natural reservoir
* Waterborne disease
* 2007 Yap Islands Zika virus outbreak

Notes

References

External links

WHO page on vector-borne diseases




The National Center for Biotechnology Information, Vector-borne Diseases: Understanding the Environmental, Human Health, and Ecological Connections



UK's ''One Health Vector-Borne Diseases Hub''

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Epidemiology
Parasitology
Disease transmission
Infectious diseases