Description
Introduction: In Central and Southern Tunisia, household waste made of materials such as rubber, plastic, animal dung, earthen, and organic matters are deposited at the vicinity of villages in the form of dams. Many of these household waste sites are sustaining large population of rodents, mainly Psammomys obesus, main reservoir host of Leishmania major, etiologic agent of zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL) which is transmitted by the sandfly vector Phlebotomus papatasi, and subsequently illegal waste sites may pose a high risk of ZCL to neighboring home ranges. Our main objective was to study the impact of the absence of waste management on the risk of ZCL in endemic areas of Central Tunisia.
Methodology: The presence P. papatasi and L. major was assessed at illegal waste sites located at the vicinity of villages in ZCL endemic areas of Central Tunisia. The study was performed in two villages: Awled Mhamed and Hechrya. Both villages are surrounded by non-agricultural fields made of chenopods, natural habitat of P. obesus. Household waste is deposited illegally forming dams at the vicinity of each village and containing several burrows of P. obesus. Thus, around each village, a natural and waste disposal sites are considered in this study. Sandflies were collected during by sticky traps placed at the entry of rodent’s burrows in the natural and in the waste disposal site of each village. Collected sandflies were identified individually to species level and tested for the presence of L. major by PCR.
Results and Discussion: A total of 1194 sand flies were collected from both villages. The densities of P. papatasi in the natural and in the waste disposal site were 10.1 and 62.1 P. papatasi per m² of stick traps, respectively. Clearly, in both villages, the density of P. papatasi differed significantly between the natural and waste disposal sites (p < 0.05). The minimum infection rate (MIR) of P. papatasi with Leishmania DNA in the natural and in the waste disposal site was 3.44 and 2.25, respectively. Leishmania major is the only Leishmania species associated with P. papatasi collected from rodent’s burrows. Overall, the MIR in the dumpsites and in the chenopod fields were 4.43±0.32 were 4.24±0.22, respectively. No significant difference was found between the MIRs in both sites (p = 0.8857). A significantly higher density of P. papatasi in waste sites compared to natural biotopes was observed. Increases in the densities of P. papatasi in illegal waste sites located at the edge of villages expand the overlap of infected ZCL vectors with communities, leading to a higher incidence of ZCL.
Conclusion: The prevention and control of ZCL also depend on the availability of improved water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) in ZCL endemic rural communities. Waste management through the education of communities to resist trash accumulation at the vicinity of villages in order to reduce the risk of ZCL transmission should be included in an integrated vector management program.
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