Knockdown resistance in Anopheles vagus, An. sinensis, An. paraliae and An. peditaeniatus populations of the Mekong region

Background: In the Mekong region (Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos), a large investigation was conducted to assess the susceptibility of Anopheles species against DDT and pyrethroids. In this study, the resistance status of the potential malaria vectors An. vagus, An. sinensis, An. paraliae and An. peditaeniatus was assessed. Methods: Bioassays were performed on field collected unfed female mosquitoes using the standard WHO susceptibility tests. In addition, the DIIS6 region of the para-type sodium channel gene was amplified and sequenced and four allele-specific PCR assays were developed to assess the kdr frequencies. Results: In Southern Vietnam all species were DDT and pyrethroid resistant, which might suggest the presence of a kdr resistance mechanism. Sequence-analysis of the DIIS6 region of the para-type sodium channel gene revealed the presence of a L1014S kdr mutation in An. vagus, An. sinensis and An. paraliae. In An. peditaeniatus, a low frequency L1014S kdr mutation was found in combination with a high frequency L1014F kdr mutation. For pyrethroids and DDT, no genotypic differentiation was found between survivors and non-survivors for any of these species. In the two widespread species, An. vagus and An. sinensis, kdr was found only in southern Vietnam and in Cambodia near the Vietnamese border. Conclusions: Different levels of resistance were measured in Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. The kdr mutation in different Anopheles species seems to occur in the same geographical area. These species breed in open agricultural lands where malaria endemicity is low or absent and vector control programs less intensive. It is therefore likely that the selection pressure occurred on the larval stages by insecticides used for agricultural purposes.