Background Individual behavior, particularly choices about prevention, plays a key role in infection transmission of vector-borne diseases (VBDs). Since the actual risk of infection is often uncertain, individual behavior is influenced by the perceived risk. A low risk perception is likely to diminish the use of preventive measures (behavior). If risk perception is a good indicator of the actual risk, then it has important implications in a context of disease elimination. However, more research is needed to improve our understanding of the role of human behavior in disease transmission. The objective of this study is to explore whether preventive behavior is responsive to risk perception, taking into account the links with disease knowledge and controlling for individuals' socioeconomic and demographic characteristics. More specifically, the study focuses on malaria, dengue fever, Zika and cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL), using primary data collected in Guyana-a key country for the control and/or elimination of VBDs, given its geographic location. Methods and findings The data were collected between August and December 2017 in four regions of the country. Questions on disease knowledge, risk perception and self-reported use of preventive measures were asked to each participant for the four diseases. A structural equation model was estimated. It focused on data collected from private households only in order to control for individuals' socioeconomic and demographic characteristics, which led to a sample size of 497 participants. The findings showed evidence of a bidirectional association between risk perception and behavior. A one-unit increase in risk perception translated into a 0.53 unit PLOS NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES

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Pharmaceutical companies are reluctant to invest in research and development (R&D) of products for neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) mainly due to the low ability-to-pay of health insurance systems and of potential consumers. The available preventive and curative interventions for NTDs mostly rely on old technologies and products that are often not adequate. Moreover, NTDs mostly affect populations living in remote rural areas and conflict zones, thereby hampering access to healthcare. The challenges posed by NTDs have led to the proliferation of a variety of public-private partnerships (PPPs) in the last decades. We conducted a systematic review to assess the functioning and impact of these partnerships on the development of and access to better technologies for NTDs. Our systematic review revealed a clear lack of empirical assessment of PPPs: we could not find any impact evaluation analyses, while these are crucial to realize the full potential of PPPs and to progress further towards NTDs elimination.