Spatial, Temporal, and Genetic Invasion Dynamics of Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) in Illinois

2020 ◽  
Vol 57 (5) ◽  
pp. 1488-1500
Author(s):  
Chris M Stone ◽  
Zhen Zuo ◽  
Bo Li ◽  
Marilyn Ruiz ◽  
Jack Swanson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aedes Albopictus ◽  
Propagule Pressure ◽  
The United States ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Transmission Potential ◽  
Vector Borne Diseases ◽  
Mitochondrial Coi ◽  
Invasive Mosquito ◽  
Northern Edge ◽  
Patterns And Processes

Abstract The spread of the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus Skuse, throughout the United States has implications for the transmission potential of vector-borne diseases. We used a 30-yr data set of occurrence records in Illinois and developed a hierarchical Bayesian model to shed light on the patterns and processes involved in the introduction and expansion along the northern edge of the geographic range of this species. We also collected specimens from 10 locations and sequenced a segment of their mitochondrial COI genes to assess possible introduction sources and geographic patterns in genetic variation present within contemporary populations. We documented an increase in the number of observations throughout the southern and central parts of Illinois over the study period. The process through which this spread occurred is likely only partially due to local dispersal. The probability of successfully overwintering was likewise low, but both these parameters increased over the study period. This suggests that the presence of Ae. albopictus has been largely due to repeated introductions, but that in recent years populations may have become established and are leading to an increase in locally driven dispersal. There was considerable genetic diversity among populations in Illinois, with 13 distinct haplotypes present in 10 sampling locations, several of which matched haplotypes previously found to be present in locations such as Texas or Japan. Further research is needed to understand how the combination of continued propagule pressure and establishment of populations are driving the increase and expansion of this invasive mosquito along its northern distribution limit.

scholarly journals Exploring Public Preferences, Priorities, and Policy Perspectives for Controlling Invasive Mosquito Species in Greece

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 83
Author(s):  
Antonios Kolimenakis ◽  
Dionysios Latinopoulos ◽  
Kostas Bithas ◽  
Clive Richardson ◽  
Konstantinos Lagouvardos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Aedes Albopictus ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Urban Ecosystems ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Public Preferences ◽  
Vector Borne Diseases ◽  
Invasive Mosquito Species ◽  
Asian Tiger ◽  
Invasive Mosquito

Climate change, urbanization, and financial crisis have created a dramatic mixture of challenges in Southern Europe, increasing further the risks of transmission of new vector-borne diseases. In the last decade, there has been a wide spread of an invasive mosquito species Aedes albopictus, commonly known as the Asian tiger mosquito, in various urban ecosystems of Greece accompanied by greater risks of infectious diseases, higher nuisance levels, and increased expenses incurred for their control. The aim of the present paper is to investigate citizens’ perception of the Aedes albopictus problem and to evaluate various policy aspects related to its control. Findings are based on the conduct of a web-based survey at a national scale and the production of national surveillance maps. Results indicate that citizens are highly concerned with the health risks associated with the new mosquito species and consider public prevention strategies highly important for the confrontation of the problem while, at the same time, surveillance maps indicate a constant intensification of the problem. The spatial patterns of these results are further investigated aiming to define areas (regions) with different: (a) Levels of risk and/or (b) policy priorities. It appears that citizens are aware of the invasive mosquito problem and appear prone to act against possible consequences. Climate change and the complex socio-ecological context of South Europe are expected to favor a deterioration of the problem and an increasing risk of the transmission of new diseases, posing, in this respect, new challenges for policy makers and citizens.

scholarly journals Transmission potential of Mayaro virus by Aedes albopictus, and Anopheles quadrimaculatus from United States

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Constentin Dieme ◽  
Alexander T Ciota ◽  
Laura D Kramer
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
New York ◽  
Aedes Albopictus ◽  
Vector Competence ◽  
The United States ◽  
Transmission Potential ◽  
Travel And Tourism ◽  
Anopheles Quadrimaculatus ◽  
Imported Cases ◽  
Mayaro Virus

Abstract Background Mayaro virus (MAYV; Alphavirus, Togaviridae) is an emerging pathogen endemic in South American countries. The increase in intercontinental travel and tourism-based forest excursions has resulted in an increase in MAYV spread, with imported cases observed in Europe and North America. Intriguingly, no local transmission of MAYV has been reported outside South America, despite the presence of potential vectors.Methods We assessed the vector competence of Aedes albopictus from New York and Anopheles quadrimaculatus for MAYV. Results We showed that Aedes albopictus from New York and Anopheles quadrimaculatus are competent vectors for MAYV. However, Aedes albopictus was more susceptible to infection. Transmission rates increased with time for both species with rates of 37.21% and 64.44% for Aedes albopictus, and 31.11% and 46.34% for Anopheles quadrimaculatus, respectively, at 7 and 14 days-post-infection. Conclusions Our results suggest there is a risk of further MAYV spread throughout the Americas and autochthonous transmission in the United States. Preventive measures such as mosquito surveillance of MAYV will be essential for early detection.

State Medical Boards' Perceptions of a Minimum Data Set and Current Practices for Collecting Physician Information

2013 ◽  
Vol 99 (4) ◽  
pp. 40-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron Young ◽  
Philip Davignon ◽  
Margaret B. Hansen ◽  
Mark A. Eggen
Keyword(s):  
Media Coverage ◽  
The United States ◽  
Minimum Data Set ◽  
Direct Patient Care ◽  
Physician Workforce ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Minimum Data ◽  
State Medical Boards ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Current Practices

ABSTRACT Recent media coverage has focused on the supply of physicians in the United States, especially with the impact of a growing physician shortage and the Affordable Care Act. State medical boards and other entities maintain data on physician licensure and discipline, as well as some biographical data describing their physician populations. However, there are gaps of workforce information in these sources. The Federation of State Medical Boards' (FSMB) Census of Licensed Physicians and the AMA Masterfile, for example, offer valuable information, but they provide a limited picture of the physician workforce. Furthermore, they are unable to shed light on some of the nuances in physician availability, such as how much time physicians spend providing direct patient care. In response to these gaps, policymakers and regulators have in recent years discussed the creation of a physician minimum data set (MDS), which would be gathered periodically and would provide key physician workforce information. While proponents of an MDS believe it would provide benefits to a variety of stakeholders, an effort has not been attempted to determine whether state medical boards think it is important to collect physician workforce data and if they currently collect workforce information from licensed physicians. To learn more, the FSMB sent surveys to the executive directors at state medical boards to determine their perceptions of collecting workforce data and current practices regarding their collection of such data. The purpose of this article is to convey results from this effort. Survey findings indicate that the vast majority of boards view physician workforce information as valuable in the determination of health care needs within their state, and that various boards are already collecting some data elements. Analysis of the data confirms the potential benefits of a physician minimum data set (MDS) and why state medical boards are in a unique position to collect MDS information from physicians.

Legislative Diversity and the Rise of Women Lobbyists

2021 ◽  
pp. 106591292110093
Author(s):  
James M. Strickland ◽  
Katelyn E. Stauffer
Keyword(s):  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Personal Characteristics ◽  
The United States ◽  
Revolving Door ◽  
Women And Politics ◽  
Political Equality ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Women Legislators ◽  
Organized Interests ◽  
American States

Despite a growing body of literature examining the consequences of women’s inclusion among lobbyists, our understanding of the factors that lead to women’s initial emergence in the profession is limited. In this study, we propose that gender diversity among legislative targets incentivizes organized interests to hire women lobbyists, and thus helps to explain when and how women emerge as lobbyists. Using a comprehensive data set of registered lobbyist–client pairings from all American states in 1989 and 2011, we find that legislative diversity influences not only the number of lobby contracts held by women but also the number of former women legislators who become revolving-door lobbyists. This second finding further supports the argument that interests capitalize on the personal characteristics of lobbyists, specifically by hiring women to work in more diverse legislatures. Our findings have implications for women and politics, lobbying, and voice and political equality in the United States.

scholarly journals Actors, Partisan Inclination, and Emotions: An Analysis of Government Shutdown News Stories Shared on Twitter

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 205630512110088
Author(s):  
Colin Agur ◽  
Lanhuizi Gan
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Responses ◽  
The United States ◽  
Online Information ◽  
News Frames ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Political Issues ◽  
News Stories ◽  
News Sharing ◽  
Government Shutdown

Scholars have recognized emotion as an increasingly important element in the reception and retransmission of online information. In the United States, because of existing differences in ideology, among both audiences and producers of news stories, political issues are prone to spark considerable emotional responses online. While much research has explored emotional responses during election campaigns, this study focuses on the role of online emotion in social media posts related to day-to-day governance in between election periods. Specifically, this study takes the 2018–2019 government shutdown as its subject of investigation. The data set shows the prominence of journalistic and political figures in leading the discussion of news stories, the nuance of emotions employed in the news frames, and the choice of pro-attitudinal news sharing.

STEM-Focused Career Courses and College Pipeline for Students with Learning Disabilities

2021 ◽  
pp. 089590482110199
Author(s):  
Jennifer A. Freeman ◽  
Michael A. Gottfried ◽  
Jay Stratte Plasman
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
High School Students ◽  
The United States ◽  
Students With Learning Disabilities ◽  
School Students ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Stem Majors ◽  
Career And Technical ◽  
Nationally Representative

Recent educational policies in the United States have fostered the growth of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) career-focused courses to support high school students’ persistence into these fields in college and beyond. As one key example, federal legislation has embedded new types of “applied STEM” (AS) courses into the career and technical education curriculum (CTE), which can help students persist in STEM through high school and college. Yet, little is known about the link between AS-CTE coursetaking and college STEM persistence for students with learning disabilities (LDs). Using a nationally representative data set, we found no evidence that earning more units of AS-CTE in high school influenced college enrollment patterns or major selection in non-AS STEM fields for students with LDs. That said, students with LDs who earned more units of AS-CTE in high school were more likely to seriously consider and ultimately declare AS-related STEM majors in college.

scholarly journals Transmission Potential of Zika Virus by Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) and Ae. mediovittatus (Diptera: Culicidae) Populations From Puerto Rico

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca A Zimler ◽  
Donald A Yee ◽  
Barry W Alto
Keyword(s):  
Puerto Rico ◽  
Aedes Aegypti ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
The United States ◽  
Infection Rates ◽  
Transmission Potential ◽  
Transmission Rates ◽  
Higher Doses ◽  
Local Transmission

Abstract Recurrence of local transmission of Zika virus in Puerto Rico is a major public health risk to the United States, where mosquitoes Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus) and Aedes mediovittatus (Coquillett) are abundant. To determine the extent to which Ae. mediovittatus are capable of transmitting Zika virus and the influence of viremia, we evaluated infection and transmission in Ae. mediovittatus and Ae. aegypti from Puerto Rico using serial dilutions of infectious blood. Higher doses of infectious blood resulted in greater infection rates in both mosquitoes. Aedes aegypti females were up to twice as susceptible to infection than Ae. mediovittatus, indicating a more effective midgut infection barrier in the latter mosquito species. Aedes aegypti exhibited higher disseminated infection (40–95%) than Ae. mediovittatus (<5%), suggesting a substantial midgut escape barrier in Ae. mediovittatus. For Ae. aegypti, transmission rates were low over a range of doses of Zika virus ingested, suggesting substantial salivary gland barriers.

scholarly journals The COVID Connection: Pandemic Anxiety, COVID-19 Comprehension, and Digital Confidence

2021 ◽  
pp. 000276422110031
Author(s):  
Laura Robinson ◽  
Jeremy Schulz ◽  
Øyvind N. Wiborg ◽  
Elisha Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Logistic Models ◽  
The United States ◽  
Sociodemographic Factors ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Lower Probability ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Digital Inequality ◽  
Partner Status ◽  
General Anxiety ◽  
Nationally Representative

This article presents logistic models examining how pandemic anxiety and COVID-19 comprehension vary with digital confidence among adults in the United States during the first wave of the pandemic. As we demonstrate statistically with a nationally representative data set, the digitally confident have lower probability of experiencing physical manifestations of pandemic anxiety and higher probability of adequately comprehending critical information on COVID-19. The effects of digital confidence on both pandemic anxiety and COVID-19 comprehension persist, even after a broad range of potentially confounding factors are taken into account, including sociodemographic factors such as age, gender, race/ethnicity, metropolitan status, and partner status. They also remain discernable after the introduction of general anxiety, as well as income and education. These results offer evidence that the digitally disadvantaged experience greater vulnerability to the secondary effects of the pandemic in the form of increased somatized stress and decreased COVID-19 comprehension. Going forward, future research and policy must make an effort to address digital confidence and digital inequality writ large as crucial factors mediating individuals’ responses to the pandemic and future crises.

scholarly journals 910. A Comprehensive, One Year, Hospital-Wide Snapshot of All Serious Infectious Complications in People Who Inject Drugs

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S489-S490
Author(s):  
John T Henderson ◽  
Evelyn Villacorta Cari ◽  
Nicole Leedy ◽  
Alice Thornton ◽  
Donna R Burgess ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multivariable Analysis ◽  
Vertebral Osteomyelitis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Infectious Complications ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Cumulative Impact ◽  
Mortality And Morbidity ◽  
Icu Admission ◽  
Risk Of Death ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background There has been a dramatic rise in IV drug use (IVDU) and its associated mortality and morbidity, however, the scope of this effect has not been described. Kentucky is at the epicenter of this epidemic and is an ideal place to better understand the health complications of IVDU in order to improve outcomes. Methods All adult in-patient admissions to University of Kentucky hospitals in 2018 with an Infectious Diseases (ID) consult and an ICD 9/10 code associated with IVDU underwent thorough retrospective chart review. Demographic, descriptive, and outcome data were collected and analyzed by standard statistical analysis. Results 390 patients (467 visits) met study criteria. The top illicit substances used were methamphetamine (37.2%), heroin (38.2%), and cocaine (10.3%). While only 4.1% of tested patients were HIV+, 74.2% were HCV antibody positive. Endocarditis (41.1%), vertebral osteomyelitis (20.8%), bacteremia without endocarditis (14.1%), abscess (12.4%), and septic arthritis (10.4%) were the most common infectious complications. The in-patient death rate was 3.0%, and 32.2% of patients were readmitted within the study period. The average length of stay was 26 days. In multivariable analysis, infectious endocarditis was associated with a statistically significant increase in risk of death, ICU admission, and hospital readmission. Although not statistically significant, trends toward mortality and ICU admission were identified for patients with prior endocarditis and methadone was correlated with decreased risk of readmission and ICU stay. FIGURE 1: Reported Substances Used FIGURE 2: Comorbidities FIGURE 3: Types of Severe Infectious Complications Conclusion We report on a novel, comprehensive perspective on the serious infectious complications of IVDU in an attempt to measure its cumulative impact in an unbiased way. This preliminary analysis of a much larger dataset (2008-2019) reveals some sobering statistics about the impact of IVDU in the United States. While it confirms the well accepted mortality and morbidity associated with infective endocarditis and bacteremia, there is a significant unrecognized impact of other infectious etiologies. Additional analysis of this data set will be aimed at identifying key predictive factors in poor outcomes in hopes of mitigating them. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures

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