Optimal Protection Index in Malaria Vector Hosts Elicited by the 10-34 kHz Animal Sound
Abstract
Abstract: A caustics startle has been exploited in the control of malaria by targeting the female Anopheles
gambiae. Studies with an inbuilt ultrasonic device (AC-UD) yielded 17.3% and 60.7% in the knockdown tests
with fan-off and fan-on respectively. The repellency by the 10-34 kHz sound of Odorant tourmate based on
observable behavioral responses and the unconfirmed repellency due to the sound from Anti-Pic® (EMR)
on the female A. gambiae was 34.12% and 30.3% respectively. Recent studies with the electronic piezo
buzzer mosquito repellent emitting 40-55 kHz sound treatment on mosquitoes yielded a protection index of
68.99%. Chemical malaria interventions were impeded by pathogen and vector resistance. This research thus
determined and analyzed the optimal protection index in malaria vector hosts based on landing rates and
bites elicited by the 10-34 kHz filtered recorded sounds of the male Anopheles gambiae, mixed male and female
Delphinapterus leucas, and further investigated the sound of the male O. tourmate. Landing rates and behavioral
responses of the female A. gambiae which were bred and reared under controlled laboratory conditions in
Kenya Medical Research Institute evoked by the filtered into 10-34 kHz sound of the male mosquito, A. gambiae,
male O. tourmate, and mixed male and female D. leucas were determined and analyzed statistically. The sounds
of the A. gambiae, O. tourmate, and D. leucas yielded 2.10, 2.20, and 3.00 landings (bites)/minute; and 42.73%,
40.24%, and 10.64% protection index respectively. The optimal acoustic entropy, power deviation, and average
acoustic power of the sound of the male A. gambiae were 4.58 bits, 35.80 dB, and 51.60 dB respectively with
wide bandwidth. The protection index evoked by the sound of the male A. gambiae did not differ significantly
from the reported repellency of the sound of O. tourmate and Anti-Pic® EMR, though differed significantly from
the sound emitted by the and AC-UD.
