Human-Mediated Marine Dispersal Influences the Population Structure of Aedes aegypti in the Philippine Archipelago

摘要

BackgroundDengue virus (DENV) is an extraordinary health burden on global scale, but still lacks effective vaccine. The Philippines is endemic for dengue fever, but massive employment of insecticides favored the development of resistance mutations in its major vector, Aedes aegypti. Alternative vector control strategies consist in releasing artificially modified mosquitos in the wild, but knowledge on their dispersal ability is necessary for a successful implementation. Despite being documented that Ae. aegypti can be passively transported for long distances, no study to date has been aimed at understanding whether human marine transportation can substantially shape the migration patterns of this mosquito. With thousands of islands connected by a dense network of ships, the Philippines is an ideal environment to fill this knowledge gap.