Brock Zika research continues
A Brock University professor will return to the Dominican Republic this month, researching mosquitoes that carry Zika virus in the popular tourist destination.
Brock medical entomologist Fiona Hunter, who was invited to Dominican Republic two years ago to train researchers to identify mosquitoes carrying Zika virus, will return to the Caribbean island in April as part of a larger project that could also help protect Canadian tourist.
Hunter will team up with Modesto Cruz from Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD) on a project called Zika Virus: Factors Influencing Vector Competence in the Dominican Republic, hoping to gain an understanding of “geographic patterns of transmission and the mosquito species that are present there,” she said in a release.
The research, which will also include additional researchers and students from the Dominican Republic, will include identifying and collecting mosquitoes from across the island.
Brock University will play a role in the project, too. The dead mosquitoes will be treated with a lysis buffer to ensure that any viruses they may be carrying are deactivated, the mosquitoes will be shipped to Brock where they will be tested for viruses such as West Nile, dengue, chikungunya and Zika.
In the media release, Cruz said the project “will contribute to implementing a better vector control system, reducing diseases and preventing neurological complications and microcephaly in the Dominican Republic population and Caribbean region.”
As well, Hunter said the research will help Canadian vacationers take necessary precautions for the specific places they’re going.
“The research project also opens up opportunities for graduate student exchanges between the two countries.”
During Hunter’s visit two years ago, organized by the and the UASD Research Institute of Microbiology and Parasitology, she said she noticed “how vulnerable the people are” in a country where many homes lacked window screens, air conditioning, mosquito repellent and other ways to prevent mosquito bites.
As a result of Hunter’s visit two years ago and other activities, the Dominican Republic government has provided a US$250,000 grant to fund a mosquito surveillance research project.