Enhanced sandfly attraction to Leishmania-infected hosts.
We report that hamsters infected with Leishmania infantum are more attractive to female sandflies in bioassays. Entrained odours from infected animals were shown by gas chromatography to contain peaks absent from uninfected individuals. Implications of enhanced transmission, potential for developing novel diagnoses and the significance to epidemiological models are discussed.
O'Shea
B
B
School of Life Sciences, Keele University, Keele, Staffordshire ST5 5BG, UK.
Rebollar-Tellez
E
E
Ward
R D
RD
Hamilton
J G C
JG
el Naiem
D
D
Polwart
A
A
D000818:Animals; D006224:Cricetinae / Q000469:parasitology*; D005260:Female; D018314:Leishmania infantum / Q000502:physiology*; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000469:parasitology*; D009812:Odorants; D011576:Psychodidae / Q000502:physiology*