Abstract
A few mosquito vectors of human viral diseases are known to lay eggs and undergo pre-imaginal development in brackish water. However, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus that are vectors of chikungunya, dengue, yellow fever and other viral diseases have been widely held to do so exclusively in freshwater. Recent evidence however shows that Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus can also undergo pre-imaginal development in brackish water in coastal areas of the tropics. This property can contribute to the transmission of viral diseases in a previously unrecognised manner. The impact of environmental changes caused by expanding populations in coastal zones, together with climate changes and rising sea levels caused by global warming, has the potential to enhance transmission of arboviral diseases in coastal areas. Increased transmission of arboviral diseases in coastal areas will also result in higher inland disease incidence. Appropriate policies and strategies to counter this threat need to be developed in a local, national and international context.
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Ramasamy, R. (2015). Adaptation of Freshwater Mosquito Vectors to Salinity Increases Arboviral Disease Transmission Risk in the Context of Anthropogenic Environmental Changes. In: Shapshak, P., Sinnott, J., Somboonwit, C., Kuhn, J. (eds) Global Virology I - Identifying and Investigating Viral Diseases. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-2410-3_3
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