From The Middletown Press
April 6, 2020

An experimental program led by Google parent Alphabet to wipe out disease-causing mosquitoes succeeded in nearly eliminating them from three test sites in California’s Central Valley.

Stamping out illness caused by mosquitoes is one of Alphabet unit Verily’s most ambitious public-health projects. The effort appears to be paying off, according to a paper published in the journal Nature Biotechnology on Monday.

Verily is also running coronavirus triage and testing in parts of California. Bradley White, the lead scientist on the Debug initiative, said mosquito-suppression is even more important during the pandemic because outbreaks of mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever can further overwhelm hospitals.

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From Zika News
April 5, 2020

Researchers in Brazil recently reported proving the potential of the Zika virus to combat advanced-stage central nervous system tumors in dogs. 

Elderly dogs with spontaneous brain tumors were treated with injections of Zika by scientists affiliated with the Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center (HUG-CELL) supported by São Paulo Research Foundation – FAPESP and hosted by the University of São Paulo (USP).

According to Oswaldo Keith Okamoto, a professor and a member of HUG-CELL, this data suggests viral therapy may be applicable to several types of central nervous system cancer, in both children and seniors over the age of 60. 

“These two groups tend to suffer more often than not from aggressive types of tumor, for which there are no effective treatments at present,” he said in the related press release.

The study was published on Tuesday, March 10, in the journal Molecular Therapy.

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From the Mission Viejo Patch
April 3, 2020

While you’re staying home to stop the spread of COVID-19, remember to also prevent the spread of mosquito-borne diseases.

The Orange County Mosquito and Vector Control District says recent rains have created cryptic mosquito-breeding sources around our homes, and while mosquitos do NOT transmit COVID-19, they do transmit West Nile virus. Taking simple actions like eliminating all standing water from around your house can help to prevent the spread of mosquito-borne illnesses.

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From Zika News
April 1, 2020

A new study may unlock the path scientists need to follow when developing a Zika virus vaccine.

Published on April 1, 2020, these researchers said ‘In the skin, antiviral proteins and other immune molecules serve as the first line of innate antiviral defense.’

In this study, they identified and characterized the induction of cutaneous innate antiviral proteins in response to IL-27 and its functional role during cutaneous defense against Zika virus infection. 

Transcriptional and phenotypic profiling of epidermal keratinocytes treated with IL-27 demonstrated activation of antiviral proteins OAS1, OAS2, OASL, and MX1 in the skin of both mice and humans. 

As a result, IL-27–mediated antiviral protein induction was found to occur in a STAT1- and IRF3-dependent, but STAT2-independent manner. 

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From the Davis Enterprise
March 30, 2020

The weekend rain has left behind a lot of stagnant water. Since temperatures are expected to increase over the next few days, this can create the perfect combination for mosquitoes to breed. The Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District reminds the public to “drain after the rain” to prevent mosquitoes from breeding.

“It’s been a wet March and we’ve had a significant amount of rain these last few days,” said Gary Goodman, district manager.

“Mosquitoes complete their life cycle much faster in warm weather. We urge all residents to do their part and drain all sources of standing water from common backyard sources such as buckets, flower pots, bird baths, old tires and other small containers that may breed mosquitoes. Getting rid of areas where mosquitoes can breed now will go a long way later in the season,” Goodman said.

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From The Woodland Daily Democrat
March 30, 2020

Remember that other virus? The one we used to worry about before coronavirus?

Well, it’s back. In fact, West Nile Virus never went away and with rains across the Sacramento Valley over the past weekend and the weather warming it’s time to take precautions against potentially deadly mosquitoes.

On Monday, Gary Goodman, district manager for the Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District, warned that stagnant water, coupled with warmer weather can create the perfect combination for mosquitoes to breed.

Fortunately, this first wave of mosquitoes isn’t as dangerous as those carrying West Nile, but those other mosquitoes aren’t far behind.

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From CBS This Morning
March 28, 2020

Precautions put in place to slow the rise of coronavirus cases in New Orleans has inadvertently led to a rat problem for the Louisiana city. With restaurants closed save for take-out service, far less food waste is being discarded in the city’s alleyways, driving the local rodent population out into the open to search for scraps. 

New Orleans’ famous Mardi Gras celebration brought thousands of tourists to the city, and medical experts believe it might be a big factor in the city’s COVID-19 outbreak. Now with Bourbon Street’s famous bars all closed and people social distancing, videos show dozens of rats scurrying through the empty streets.

“I turn the corner, there’s about 30 rats at the corner, feasting on something in the middle of the street,” Charles Marsala of New Orleans Insider Tours and AWE News told CBS News’ Omar Villafranca. Marsala said he had “never” seen anything like it before.

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From Palo Alto Online
March 25, 2020

Palo Alto Baylands trails will be closed for several hours on Thursday for aerial treatment of mosquitoes, the Santa Clara County Vector Control District said in a press release issued Tuesday.

A helicopter crew will fly over the Baylands with a spray that targets the winter salt marsh mosquito (Aedes squamiger) with naturally occurring microbes and a mosquito-specific hormone. The treatment has been safely and effectively used by the county annually since 1992, the district said.

The aerial spraying is scheduled to start at 7:30 a.m. and will last a few hours.

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From Pasadena Now
March 23, 2020

The San Gabriel Valley Mosquito & Vector Control District (SGVMVCD) will suspend programs and services this week to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

This temporary closure will have minimal impact on the agency’s core mission to suppress mosquito populations due to the forecasted days of rain and colder temperatures. Employees will continue to work remotely while the District facility is closed to the public.

“We care deeply about the health and safety of the public and our staff,” said District Manager Jared Dever. “And for this reason, our agency will close this week out of an abundance of caution.”

SGVMVCD’s automated online tip line will remain open for residents to report mosquito issues in the community. For the most up-to-date information, please visit www.sgvmosquito.org.

“We appreciate the patience and support from the public during this uncertain time,” said Levy Sun, SGVMVCD public information officer. “In between the rain events, we encourage all residents who are Safer at Home to stop mosquitoes in their yards and patios.”

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From News-Press
March 20, 2020

“The situation is now terrible … over 150 new cases yesterday and 20 deaths … All business and work is suspended … The city government is virtually defunct, the heads having fled… God knows where the end is.”

More than 100 years ago, that’s what Jacksonville’s mayor wrote to a friend about yellow fever, a viral disease that was gripping Florida in 1888. Sound familiar?

The viral disease’s reach extended south as well, as far as North Fort Myers, where a Caloosahatchee tributary still bears the epidemic’s name. Emptying into the river just opposite Thomas Edison’s winter home,  Yellow Fever Creek has been on my “to write about” list forever.

Not because of its scrappy band of advocates, who’ve been working hard to get it better preserved and protected, but because of that name. See, some would have us forget its original label and call it Hancock Creek instead. And I can certainly understand the distaste for its original label, thanks to one of the region’s early public health calamities, which calls to mind some of what we’re experiencing today.

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From Medical Xpress
March 20, 2020

An underlying virus does not stop the body’s immune system from launching a strong defense against a second, newly introduced virus, according to a Yale-led study that appears in the March 9 online edition of the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

For the study, Yale researchers obtained blood samples from patients from India with dengue infection, working in partnership with investigators from The National Institute of Mental Health and NeuroSciences in India and their colleagues at Apollo Hospital in Bangalore. They then infected these samples with the Zika virus and measured the cells’ immune response using advanced cell-profiling technology. The researchers found that the underlying dengue infection did not stop the cells from launching a robust immune response against the newly introduced Zika virus.

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From Gold Country Media
March 14, 2020

Mosquito season began a little early this year. With the unseasonably warm temperatures this month, officials from the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District have been hard at work.

“People are getting eaten alive,” said Meagan Luevano, public information officer for the district. “It’s been so warm, and the rice field mosquito has been pretty much everywhere and they are really aggressive biters.”

Luevano delivered a report to the Auburn City Council on Monday, reporting on what residents should look out for this year.

“Because we were so warm in February, this year our season sort of got started a little early,” Luevano said.

The vector control district’s main job is mostly to monitor the mosquito and tick community and educate the public when they are at risk of a disease carried by one of the pests. They also educate the community on how to defend themselves against mosquitoes and ticks.

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From IFL Science
March 12, 2020

In 2015-16, the world got a small taste of the coronavirus pandemic with the Zika virus outbreak. Although the method of transmission of Zika is very different, and it’s seldom fatal, there was a similar scrambling to understand the disease and work out how to contain it. A particular puzzle was why the effects were so much more severe in Northeast Brazil than elsewhere. New evidence points the finger at water contamination.

Zika virus was first detected in Africa in the 1940s. Although related to other mosquito-borne viruses that cause lethal conditions such as dengue fever, it was little studied because effects were usually mild. That was until its arrival in the Americas, where infections triggered a wave of birth defects.

The outbreak was widespread, but its most severe effects were much more concentrated. The World Health Organization lists “increased risk of preterm birth, fetal death and stillbirth” as consequences of infection during pregnancy, but the most severe effect was children born with significantly smaller brains (microcephaly). Children that were born with Zika-induced microcephaly are too young for us to fully know the long-term consequences, but severe brain damage is likely.

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From Phys.org
March 12, 2020

Brazilian researchers have just reported proving the potential of zika virus to combat advanced-stage central nervous system tumors in dogs. The study was published on Tuesday, March 10, in the journal Molecular Therapy.

Three elderly dogs with spontaneous brain tumors were treated with injections of zika virus by scientists affiliated with the Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center (HUG-CELL) supported by São Paulo Research Foundation—FAPESP and hosted by the University of São Paulo (USP).

“We observed a surprising reversal of the clinical symptoms of the disease, as well as tumor reduction and longer survival with quality, which matters most. Moreover, the treatment was well tolerated and there were no adverse side-effects. We’re genuinely excited by the results,” Mayana Zatz, a professor at USP’s Institute of Biosciences (IB) and HUG-CELL’s principal investigator told.

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From Smithsonian Magazine
March 10, 2020

ire suppression has been used as a forest management tool for decades, but a growing body of research shows that California’s forest ecosystems have evolved to live with, and even rely on, some amount of seasonal wildfire. A recent study published in Scientific Reports adds to that knowledge, finding that bat populations are doing better in areas recently affected by fire, compared to areas that grown thick from years of fire suppression.

The research, led by ecologist Zack Steel of University of California, Berkeley, focused on bats in the Sierra Nevada, a mountain range in central and eastern California. Of the 17 bat species the team studied, some are known to prefer wide open areas while others can maneuver in a cluttered canopy. Eight species were found in unburned areas, and 11 fluttered above the fire-affected ones. Only one species’ population fell after fires.

“We expected to see one group of species benefiting from fire—the more open-habitat-adapted species—and another group, the more clutter-adapted species, being negatively affected by fire, preferring the unburned areas,” Steel tells Scientific American’s Jason Goldman. “But even some of those species were occurring more often in burned areas.”

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From My San Antonio
March 8, 2020

The current coronavirus outbreak has been the news story of the year (and it’s been a busy year — remember that impeachment thing?).

From when a cluster of pneumonia cases was found in and around Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan, China, in late December 2019, to recent deaths in Washington state and the growing spread of confirmed cases across the US, the outbreak has gripped the world. We’re in the midst of one of the biggest global health emergencies of our time, and only time will tell how it goes down in history.

The effects of COVID-19 on patients can vary from no symptoms at all, a shortness of breath and fatigue to a progression into pneumonia and multi-organ failure in the most vulnerable people. But how does the coronavirus epidemic (which is yet to be officially defined as a “pandemic”) compare to outbreaks of the past?

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From Science Daily
February 27, 2020

When disease epidemics and outbreaks occur, conspiracy theories often emerge that compete with the information provided by public health officials. A Dartmouth-led study in Science Advances finds that information used to counter myths about Zika in Brazil not only failed to reduce misperceptions but also reduced the accuracy of people’s other beliefs about the disease.

From the Chico Enterprise-Record
February 24, 2020

CHICO — Each year, usually around February, the Butte County Mosquito and Vector Control District gets a flood of calls from concerned residents about the sudden jump in the mosquito population.

While there are certainly more of them in the air lately, the ones that appear in February are known as the Anopheles Freeborni mosquito. They are pests, but the good news is that they do not carry West Nile Virus, said Maritza Sandoval, the district’s office manager.

According to the district, this is normal.

Sandoval said the anopheles mosquito generally goes looking for a blood meal any day that reaches 65 degrees or higher.

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From CBS4
February 19, 2020

HIDALGO COUNTY, Texas (CBS 4) — A mosquito-borne illness that instilled fear across the country in 2015, slowly made its way to the Rio Grande Valley.

The Zika virus put everyone on high alert, especially expecting mothers wanting to have a healthy baby.

To this day, there is still no cure but there soon could be a way to prevent it, as Doctors Hospital at Renaissance concluded clinical trials on a potential Zika vaccine.

“It was named after the Zika forest in Africa and that is when it was first discovered back in the ’50s. It’s been around for a long time,” said Eddie Olivarez, Health and Human Services Chief Director for Hidalgo County.

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From Fox 40
February 12, 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KTXL) — While the warm weather is accelerating the hatching of eggs and development of larvae in standing water, the mosquitos out and about over this winter warm spell are already mature.

They’ve just been hibernating. With the number of man-made and natural waterways in the area, there’s no shortage of opportunity for mosquitos to breed.

The current warm spell tricks them into believing its spring. They’re waking up hungry and looking to feed.

“They’re definitely out, they’re hungry, they’re aggressive and they’re looking to bite,” said Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control spokeswoman Luz Maria Robles.

It’s something mother Rochelle Ginter discovered firsthand.

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From KCRA3
February 11, 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —

Higher daytime temperatures are leading to an increase in mosquitoes seeking to draw the season’s first blood meals in the Sacramento region.

“What we have right now are adult mosquitoes that have been hunkering down during winter months in area rice fields,” said Luz Robles, a Sac-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control spokeswoman.

The specific type of mosquitoes increasing in activity are adults in the Anopheles freeborni genus. These mosquitoes do not carry the West Nile virus and are not a coronavirus threat, said Robles.

This species can travel as many as 10 miles away from winter hideouts.

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From Palo Alto Online
February 10, 2020

Santa Clara County will unleash an eco-friendly larvicide on mosquitoes in the Palo Alto Baylands on Wednesday.

Part of an annual tradition since 1992, the county’s Vector Control District — tasked with monitoring and managing the spread of diseases such as the plague, rabies and other maladies that can come from rodents or insects like mosquitoes — will be covering Palo Alto Baylands trails with a soil bacterium esoterically known as the Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis or Bti.

What’s more important to know than the egregiously long and hard-to-pronounce name of the bacteria is that the marsh trails of the Baylands are closed to the public during the treatment, which starts around 7:30 a.m. and is expected to last several hours, according to a county press release.

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From Forbes
February 8, 2020

Mosquito-carried diseases such as the Zika virus and Dengue continue to thrive in warm temperate parts of the world, but new US Department of Defense research suggests we are on the cusp of a vaccine that could potentially work to fight both infections. 

A new study published online in Nature Medicine reveals results from an ongoing project led by scientists from the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. In the Phase 1 trial, scientists found that an antibody, named MZ4, was able to have a positive effect on both the Zika virus and the dengue virus. Although the early stages, these results suggest this antibody may one day play a role in a universal vaccine that would be able to work against the Zika virus and dengue. 

“Rapid-onset countermeasures are needed to protect military personnel, travelers and residents in areas where emerging infections such as Zika and dengue viruses are already widespread and expanding,” said Dr. Kayvon Modjarrad, who leads the U.S. Army Zika vaccine program, directs the Emerging Infectious Diseases Branch at WRAIR and is one of the lead authors on the paper, in a press release.”These results demonstrate the potential for MZ4 to be part of the prevention toolbox for these diseases.”

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From the Sonoma Index-Tribune
February 6, 2020

In California ticks are ready to bite year-round, but there are peak periods for some ticks in certain stages of their life cycle. Winter happens to be when the adult ticks that can cause Lyme disease are most active.

In 2019 in Sonoma and Marin counties, about 1.1 percent of adult ticks and 5 percent of nymphs tested were infected with Borrrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, said Nizza Sequeira, spokesperson for Marin-Sonoma Mosquito and Vector Control District.

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From UC Merced
February 5, 2020

Public health Ph.D. student Ryan Torres presented research at last month’s Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California Conference in San Diego that could be foundational for future mosquito-control efforts.

Torres’ presentation, “Wolbachia Infections in Mosquitoes of Merced County,” is based on a collaborative project with the Merced County Mosquito Abatement District. The research is funded by a Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) training grant with his faculty advisor, Professor Andrea Joyce.

The invasive mosquito Aedes aegypti — known as the Zika mosquito — has expanded its reach in California and was found in Merced County in 2017. A new pest control technique, Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes or “sterile male releases,” has been used in Fresno and globally to reduce mosquito populations and to prevent vector-borne diseases — diseases that result from infections transmitted to humans and other animals by blood-feeding anthropods.

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From MedicalXpress
February 3, 2020

A new study led by scientists at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research has shown for the first time that a single dose of an experimental Zika vaccine in a dengue-experienced individual can boost pre-existing flavivirus immunity and elicit protective cross-neutralizing antibody responses against both Zika and dengue viruses. Findings were published today in Nature Medicine.

Researchers analyzed the antibody responses of a dengue-experienced volunteer who participated in a Phase 1 clinical trial of the WRAIR-developed Zika purified inactivated virus vaccine. They identified a potent cross-reactive antibody called MZ4 that demonstrated a potent ability to neutralize the Zika virus as well as the dengue virus serotype-2 strain. In addition, MZ4 protected against Zika and dengue in a mouse model of infection.

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From KESQ
December 3, 2019

More rain is on the way, and could potentially bring unwanted visitors.

“They climb up on the trees onto the roof, they go down the pipe vents if there are any openings on the roof,” Mr. Beez Pest Control Owner Barrett Toohey said.

Toohey has worked in the business for over a decade. He says rats will go through any opening they can find. The rodent problem tends to spike between the months of October and March, especially when it rains.

“Basically floods them out of their habitats, they’re looking for shelter. The colder it gets the more rain, they come inside homes. They’re looking for a warm place to nest,” Toohey said.

Rats are also known to chew through walls and pipes.

“They always have their incisors growing so they’re always looking to chew things,” Tammy Gordon, with the Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District said.

Despite the pesky problem, there is a silver lining.

“Southern California does have some health risks with rodents. Our region does not,” Gordon said.

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From Precision Vaccinations
December 2, 2019

December 2nd, 2019 – The Florida Department of Health (DOH) has reported information that may impact where pregnant women vacation this winter.

The Florida DOH published its Week #43 report of November 23, 2019, which confirms 14 locally-acquired dengue fever cases during 2019.

These 14 dengue cases were reported in the south Florida counties of Broward (1), Hillsborough (1), and Miami-Dade (12).

This is important news since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its website during October 2019, saying ‘If possible, avoid travel to areas with risk of dengue during pregnancy.’

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From BioTechniques
November 29, 2019

Approximately half of the world’s population is at risk of acquiring vector-borne diseases, according to the WHO (Geneva, Switzerland). Flaviviruses, including Zika, West Nile virus and dengue virus, can lead to severe illness and death.

A team of researchers from Washington State University(WSU; USA) has demonstrated that insulin could be key in targeting the spread of these mosquito-borne infections, due to its virus-suppressing downstream effects.

“It’s really important that we have some sort of protection against these diseases because currently, we don’t have any treatments. If we’re able to stop the infection at the level of the mosquito, then humans wouldn’t get the virus ” explained lead author Laura Ahlers (now at the NIH; MA, USA).

In Drosophila, chosen due to their similarity in immune response with mosquitoes, the team identified an insulin-like receptor responsible for preventing viral replication of the West Nile virus within the flies when challenged.

Previous studies have demonstrated that within mosquitoes, insulin increases the immune response. However, the researchers have now deduced that this is due to the activation of the JAK/STAT signaling cascade via ERK, which leads to insulin-dependent suppression of viral replication.

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From Zika News
November 29, 2019

A recent study found about 32 percent of children born to mothers with probable or confirmed Zika virus infection had below average or poor scores when tested at age 18 months.

This study is important since December 2017, there were about 4,100 pregnant women confirmed with the Zika virus in Puerto Rico.

A Zika virus infection during pregnancy has been associated with adverse birth outcomes known as the Congenital Zika Syndrome (CZS), characterized by microcephaly and central nervous system abnormalities. 

However, microcephaly is considered the “tip of the iceberg” of this congenital infection. 

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