Data from Entomological Collections of Aedes (Diptera: Culicidae) in a post-epidemic area of Chikungunya, City of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo.

Arbovirus epidemics (chikungunya, dengue, West Nile fever, yellow fever and zika) are a growing threat in African areas where Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti (Linnaeus, 1762) and Aedes albopictus (Skuse, 1895) are present. The lack of comprehensive sampling of these two vectors limits our understanding of their propagation dynamics in areas at risk of arboviruses. Here, we collected 6,943 observations (both larval and human capture) of Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus between 2020 and 2022. The study was carried out in the Vallee de la Funa, a post-epidemic zone in the city of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. Our results provide important information for future basic and advanced studies on the ecology and phenology of these vectors, as well as on vector dynamics after a post-epidemic period. The data from this study are published in the public domain as the Darwin Core Archive in the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

The effect of a mass distribution of insecticide-treated nets on insecticide resistance and entomological inoculation rates of Anopheles gambiae s.l. in Bandundu City, Democratic Repub`lic of Congo.

INTRODUCTION: insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) remain the mainstay of malaria vector control in the Democratic Republic of Congo. However, insecticide resistance of malaria vectors threatens their effectiveness. Entomological inoculation rates and insecticide susceptibility in Anopheles gambiae s.l. were evaluated before and after mass distribution of ITNs in Bandundu City for possible occurrence of resistance. METHODS: a cross-sectional study was conducted from 15th July 2015 to 15th June 2016. Adult mosquitoes were collected using pyrethrum spray catches and human landing catches and identified to species level and tested for the presence of sporozoites. Bioassays were carried out before and after distribution of ITNs to assess the susceptibility of adult mosquitoes to insecticides. Synergist bioassays were also conducted and target site mutations assessed using Polymerase chain reaction (PCR). RESULTS: a total of 1754 female An. gambiae s.l. were collected before and after deployment of ITNs. Fewer mosquitoes were collected after the distribution of ITNs. However, there was no significant difference in sporozoite rates or the overall entomological inoculation rate before and after the distribution of ITNs. Test-mosquitoes were resistant to deltamethrin, permethrin, and Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane but susceptible to bendiocarb. Pre-exposure of mosquitoes to Piperonyl butoxide increased their mortality after exposure to permethrin and deltamethrin. The frequency of the Kinase insert domain receptor (kdr)-West gene increased from 92 to 99% before and after the distribution of nets, respectively. CONCLUSION: seasonal impacts could be a limiting factor in the analysis of these data; however, the lack of decrease in transmission after the distribution of new nets could be explained by the high-level of resistance to pyrethroid.