Research
Research Activities
Contex UT-Mexico Collaborative Program
Dr. Kariyat was awarded a grant to study Chagas disease in Mexico and Latin America caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, and vectored by Triatomine bugs. The disease is of utmost importance since there is no known cure, and especially in Mexico, little has been done to control the vector and more importantly, the chemical ecology underlying the disease is not well understood. An interesting feature of the vector is its aggregation behavior – an area planned to critically explore and examine via studying the chemical compounds linked to this behavior. To accomplish this, the plan is to collect, analyze, and test the effect of compounds (individual compounds and their blend) on the insect’s aggregation behavior when they attract conspecifics to communal refuges. This project will not only provide key information to set up a possible Chagasic bug control program but may also reveal how parasites may change the behavior of hosts in insect vectors of medical importance. The project is funded by Contex UT-Mexico collaborative program, and will have three investigators from three institutions; Drs. Rupesh Kariyat (Assistant Professor of Biology; UTRGV; Dr. Alejandro Coìrdoba-Aguilar, Researcher, Instituto de Ecologiìa, Universidad Nacional Autoìnoma de Meìxico; and Dr. Ana Erika Gutieìrrez Cabrera, Researcher, Instituto Nacional de Salud Puìblica-Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnologiìa).
Texas Department of State Health Services and the CDC
The Vitek Vector Biology Laboratory is continuing to study the patterns of insecticide resistance in mosquitoes along the eastern half of the Texas Mexico border. The project funded by the Texas Department of State Health Services and partly by the CDC is currently entering its third year of data collection (year two expanded with a partnership including UTEP to surveil the entire Texas Mexico boarder). The project involves the collection of mosquito eggs in participating cities collected on a weekly basis (currently from nine cities from Brownsville to Del Rio) and then rearing them in the lab. Once adulthood is reached, the females are then tested for susceptibility to the three commonly used pesticides, including the most frequently used in the region, Permethrin. The project revealed some interesting patterns of resistance and susceptibility in the first year of data collection; during the second year, the data is being analyzed to determine if those patterns hold up.
A publication on this research is being finalized to be published soon. In addition to the research, the funding also supports two full-time employees, two full-time graduate students, and undergraduate students.
The South Texas Mosquitos Borne Diseases Surveillance Project
The South Texas Mosquitos Borne Disease Surveillance project (funded by the CDC) continues into its third year. Drs. Thomas and Vitek have worked closely with the Texas Department of State Health Services to develop their testing protocol, and continue to test mosquitoes for viral infection. We hope to expand our city and county partners to include the City of Harlingen in the upcoming year. To date, over 200,000 mosquitoes have been tested, and luckily no evidence has been found of the Zika virus, Dengue virus, or Chikungunya virus. The testing is being expanded to include the West Nile virus in fall 2019. In addition to expanding the testing, surveillance effort is also expanding to include tick-borne diseases. We are pursuing active partnerships with animal control, veterinarians, and animal shelters to assist in the collection of ticks and fleas. Drs. Feria, Thomas, and Vitek, as well as undergraduates from Dr. Vitek's lab and a graduate student working with Dr. Feria, are working to assess the risk of tick-borne diseases in the region such as Rock Mountain Spotted Fever. Results from these projects are pending publication and have been presented at numerous conferences.
Continued funding Asian Citrus Psyllid in the Rio Grande Valley
Dr. Vitek has received continued funding for his three grant-funded cooperative efforts to study and control Asian Citrus Psyllid in the RGV. Working with Dr. Dan Flores from USDA, Dr. Vitek is assisting using biological control methods, (including a parasitoid wasp to control the vector, as well as developing methods for entomopathogenic fungi to control the vector). This project represents a long-term cooperative effort that is entering its eighth year and has resulted in multiple presentations, as well as providing many opportunities for student experience and internship at the USDA.