title: Epidemiological status of kissing-bugs in South East Asia: A preliminary assessment.
abstract: Kissing-bugs (Triatominae) are being increasingly reported as a biting nuisance in SE Asia, with severe bite reactions sometimes leading to anaphylactic shock. In addition, they pose a risk for vector-borne transmission of trypanosomiasis, with potential diagnostic difficulties due to the range of trypanosome species in the region. Here, we review available information about Triatominae in Asia, and present additional comparisons using morphometry, cytogenetics, and new DNA sequence data, to clarify their relationship with each other and with the better known American species. We deduce that all Asian Triatominae have probably derived from forms originally spread during the 15-18th centuries on sailing ships, from the area that now forms the southern USA.
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Recherche 177- INTERTRYP (Interactions Hôte-Vecteur-Parasite-Environnement dans les Maladies Tropicales Négligées dues aux Trypanosomatidés), Unité Mixte de Recherches CIRAD (Centre International de Recherches Agronomiques pour le Développement) - IRD (Institut de Recherches pour le Développement), Campus International de Baillarguet, Montpellier, France. Electronic address: dujardinbe@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Jean-Pierre
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Dujardin
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Malariology, Parasitology and Entomology (NIMPE), Hanoi, Viet Nam,. Electronic address: phamthikhoanimpe@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Khoa
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pham Thi
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources (IEBR), Vietnam Academy of Sciences and Technology, Hanoi, Viet Nam,. Electronic address: txlam_iebr@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Lam
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Truong Xuan
authors.affiliation: Sección Genética Evolutiva, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República (UDELAR), Calle Iguá 4225. 11400 Montevideo, Uruguay. Electronic address: fcopanzera@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Panzera
authors.affiliation: Sección Genética Evolutiva, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República (UDELAR), Calle Iguá 4225. 11400 Montevideo, Uruguay. Electronic address: spita@fcien.edu.uy.
authors.forename: Sebastián
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pita
authors.affiliation: London School of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (LSHTM, ITD), Keppel Street, London WC1 E7HT, UK. Electronic address: cj.schofield@lshtm.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Chris J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Schofield
mesh_terms: D000569:Americas / Q000453:epidemiology; D000818:Animals; D004463:Ecology; D005202:Asia, Eastern / Q000453:epidemiology; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006801:Humans; D007303:Insect Vectors / Q000235:genetics* / Q000469:parasitology*; D010802:Phylogeny; D014224:Triatoma / Q000235:genetics* / Q000469:parasitology*; D014352:Trypanosomiasis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000635:transmission*
keywords: Asia; Cytogenetics; Morphometrics; Triatominae; Trypanosomiasis