Trapping of triatomines, Chagas disease vectors, in experimental boxes that mimic an insect natural habitat

IBARRA BOUZADA, LUCIA; MARTINEZ BENINGAZA ANDREA; CECERE C; GUERENSTEIN PG

Congreso; 6th Congress of the Latin American Association of Chemical Ecology; 2021

Triatoma infestans is the main vector of Chagas disease, a neglected disease, in South America. The early detection of the vector is necessary within current vector control programs. We carried out assays aimed at developing an efficient tool to monitor the insects at low population densities. Thus, we tested an odor-baited trap (SPT, a sticky pitfall trap) in experimental boxes that mimic an insect natural habitat under semi-controlled laboratory conditions, using 10 four instar larvae of T. infestans in each box. Nine trials were carried out on different days. Three experimental boxes were set simultaneously during 14 hrs each night to test independently: 1) a SPT baited with a synthetic odor blend (test, T); 2) a SPT with a mouse (positive control, C+); 3) an empty SPT (negative control, C-). The synthetic odor lure consisted of three sachets of LDPE each containing a solution of a host odor: L(+) lactic acid, valeric acid and ammonia. Seven of the nine trials were recorded using an IR video camera. The percentage of insects captured was intermediate in T (Median, 30%) in comparison to C- (10%) and C+ (70%). The percentage of capture was statistically different between T/C- (p = 0.001) and T/C+ (p<0.0001) using the Tukey method implemented in R. The video recordings of the first 30 minutes of the assay showed that the activity level of the insects was significantly higher in C+ and T than in C-. Overall, the percentage of insects captured among those that visited the trap was greater in C+ (71%) than in T (33%) and in C- (0%). These results show that the SPT baited with a synthetic odor blend is able to capture triatomines, and promises to be an effective tool with respect to the standard triatomine detection method for monitoring house infection.