MORPHOLOGICAL IDENTIFICATION AND MOLECULAR CHARACTERISATION OF ANOPHELES MOSQUITOES FROM OYE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF EKITI STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Malaria remains one of the most important parasitic diseases in sub-Saharan Africa. Effective control and possible elimination of the disease must take into cognizance proper identification and characterization of mosquito vector species. This study documents the abundance and spatial distribution of Anopheles mosquitoes in Oye Local Government Area of Ekiti state. Mosquito larvae were collected from natural breeding habitats from three randomly selected study sites and maintained to adult stage in the insectary. Indoor collections of adult mosquitoes using Pyrethrum Spray Catch (PSC) method was also carried out in the three communities. The mosquitoes were identified using morphological keys and subsequently subjected to Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) procedures for molecular characterization. Data obtained were analysed using SPSS version 20.0and confidence interval was set at 95%. A total of 1,364 mosquitoes were collected out of which 738 (54%) were Culex, 473 (35%) were Aedes and 153 (11%) were Anopheles. There was a significant difference in the number of mosquitoes collected across the three study sites (P<0.05) with OyeEgbo community having the highest (44%). Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) analysis revealled that all the sibling species were Anopheles gambiae s.s. Proper identification of malaria vectors and an understanding of their malaria transmission indices are critical for strategic planning in malaria control interventions.