The field of morphometrics is developing quickly. Recent advances have enabled geometric techniques to be applied to many zoological problems, particularly those involving epidemiologically-relevant mosquitoes. Herein, we briefly introduce geometric morphometric (GM) techniques and then review selected groups of mosquitoes (Culicidae) to which those techniques have been applied. In most of the reviewed cases, GM was capable of satisfactorily discriminating among the tested groups primarily when the studies considered differences within and among species, sexual dimorphism, treatments and the separation of laboratory strains. Although GM approaches have developed quite rapidly, some caution must be taken during data processing for a reliable biometrical approach, such as allometry and asymmetry analyses, scale removal and wing clarification staining for landmark digitization. We also critically forecast directions in this field and discuss how the creation of image databases should enhance species identification in culicids.
Background Currently, Brazil is experiencing one of the fastest increasing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) mortality rates worldwide, with a minimum of 158,000 confirmed deaths presently. The city of São Paulo is particularly vulnerable because it is the most populated city in Brazil. Thus, this study aimed to analyse COVID-19 mortality in a spatiotemporal context in São Paulo, with respect to socio-economic levels. Method We modelled the deaths using spatiotemporal architectures and Poisson probability distributions using a latent Gaussian Bayesian model approach. Results Both total deaths and confirmed deaths showed similar spatial patterns. Mortality was higher in men and increased with age. The most critical period regarding mortality occurred between the 20 th and 23 rd epidemiological weeks, followed by an apparent stabilisation of the epidemiological trend. The risk of death was greater in areas with the worst social conditions during the study period. However, this pattern was not uniform over time, since we identified a shift of high risk from the areas with the best socio-economic conditions to those with the worst conditions. Conclusions Our study corroborated the relationship between COVID-19 mortality and socio-economic conditions, revealing the importance of geographic screening in the integration of better actions to face the pandemic.
BackgroundAnopheles (Kerteszia) cruzii is a primary vector of Plasmodium parasites in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest. Adult females of An. cruzii and An. homunculus, which is a secondary malaria vector, are morphologically similar and difficult to distinguish when using external morphological characteristics only. These two species may occur syntopically with An. bellator, which is also a potential vector of Plasmodium species and is morphologically similar to An. cruzii and An. homunculus. Identification of these species based on female specimens is often jeopardised by polymorphisms, overlapping morphological characteristics and damage caused to specimens during collection. Wing geometric morphometrics has been used to distinguish several insect species; however, this economical and powerful tool has not been applied to Kerteszia species. Our objective was to assess wing geometry to distinguish An. cruzii, An. homunculus and An. bellator.MethodsSpecimens were collected in an area in the Serra do Mar hotspot biodiversity corridor of the Atlantic Forest biome (Cananeia municipality, State of Sao Paulo, Brazil). The right wings of females of An. cruzii (n= 40), An. homunculus (n= 50) and An. bellator (n= 27) were photographed. For each individual, 18 wing landmarks were subjected to standard geometric morphometrics. Discriminant analysis of Procrustean coordinates was performed to quantify wing shape variation.ResultsIndividuals clustered into three distinct groups according to species with a slight overlap between representatives of An. cruzii and An. homunculus. The Mahalanobis distance between An. cruzii and An. homunculus was consistently lower (3.50) than that between An. cruzii and An. bellator (4.58) or An. homunculus and An. bellator (4.32). Pairwise cross-validated reclassification showed that geometric morphometrics is an effective analytical method to distinguish between An. bellator, An. cruzii and An. homunculus with a reliability rate varying between 78-88%. Shape analysis revealed that the wings of An. homunculus are narrower than those of An. cruzii and that An. bellator is different from both of the congeneric species.ConclusionIt is possible to distinguish among the vectors An. cruzii, An. homunculus and An. bellator based on female wing characteristics.
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