A Comparative Study on the Biodiversity and Species Richness of Phlebotomine Sand Flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) in Kermanshah and Khuzestan Provinces of Iran Publisher



Yahaghi N¹ ; Fatemi M¹ ; Hanafibojd AA¹ ; Naghian A² ; Yaghoobiershadi MR¹ ; Zahraeiramezani A¹ ; Rassi Y¹ ; Soleimani H³ ; Dehghan H⁴ ; Veysi A⁵ ; Akbarzadeh K¹ ; Akhavan AA¹ Show Affiliations
Source: Journal of Arthropod-Borne Diseases Published:2022

Abstract

Background: Leishmaniasis is one of the most important vector-borne and neglected tropical diseases in many parts of the world. The main objective of this study was to determine the biodiversity of phlebotomine sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae, Phlebotominae) in Khuzestan and Kermanshah Provinces of Iran. Methods: Sampling was conducted in Khuzestan and Kermanshah Provinces using sticky paper traps and CDC light traps. The samples were then stored in 96% alcohol-containing vials, mounted, and identified. Afterward, the alpha diversity (using Simpson’s, Shannon-Weiner’s diversity, evenness, Maghalef’s, Menhinick’s, Hill and indices) and beta diversity indices (using Sorensen’s and Jaccard’s coefficients) were calculated. Results: A total of 4302 sand flies were caught and identified which comprised mostly of Phlebotomus papatasi, Ph. alexandri and Ph. sergenti. It was found that among the four counties of Ahvaz, Shush, Shushtar and Dezful in Khuzestan Province, Shush had the lowest, and Shushtar, the highest amount of species diversity and evenness. In the four studied counties of Kermanshah Province, species diversity in Kermanshah County had the lowest amount and Sarpol-e-Zahab, the highest. The species richness in Kermanshah County was the lowest, while Qasr-e-Shirin County had the highest amount. Conclusion: An overview of the biodiversity of phlebotomine sand flies in Kermanshah County in Kermanshah Province, and Shush County in Khuzestan Province, showed less stability in community structure of these vectors, which can be counted as an alarm for emerging dominant vectors among the studied counties and have the potential to increase the prevalence of leishmaniasis. Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Tehran University of Medical Sciences.