Seven species of mosquitoes were fed artificially on blood containing hepatitis B antigen. Radioimmunoassay revealed that all the ingested antigen disappeared in parallel with digestion of the blood meal by the mosquito. There was no evidence of replication of hepatitis B antigen, and the results indicate that the species of mosquitoes examined do not serve as biological vectors of this infection. The possibility of mechanical transmission of hepatitis B antigen by mosquitoes is discussed. Seroepidemiologic surveys on selected groups of persons in tropical countries have shown that hepatitis B antigen (Australia antigen) is detected in individuals of all ages but most frequently in children aged five to 15 years. The carrier rate of this antigen in some tropical regions may be as high as 20%. Although some modes of transmission of hepatitis B infection in the tropics are similar to those in other parts of the world, additional factors may be of importance in these regions. These include tattooing, ritual circumcision, scarification, and the bites of blood-sucking insects. There is one report, as yet unconfirmed, that some species of mosquito may serve as biological vectors for hepatitis B infection [1]. Hepatitis B antigen was found by the immunofluorescent anti

Role of Mosquitoes in Transmission of Hepatitis B Antigen

Role of arthropods in transmission of hepatitis-B virus in the tropics.

The fate of hepatitis B virus in the bedbug was investigated to assess this insect's potential as a vector Colony-reared Cimex hemipterus (Fabr) were fed once on blood positive for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) The insects were sampled at intervals thereafter and tested for HBsAg by radioimmunoassay HBsAg persisted for up to six weeks in the bedbug's body after a single HBsAg-positive meal, during which time several further HBsAg-negative blood meals were taken This result explains the high rates of field infection in bedbugs and further supports the hypothesis that bedbugs may play a role in transmission of hepatitis B virus

Persistence of hepatitis B surface antigen in the bedbug Cimex hemipterus (Fabr.).

W. C. Reeves, C. J. Peters, J. J. Lander, R. H. Purcell, and Karl M. Johnson From the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Middle America Research Unit, Balboa Heights, Canal Zone; the Department of Medicine, Washington University Medical School, St. Louis, Missouri; and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland

Differences in the Prevalence of Hepatitis B Antigen and Antibody among Panamanian Indian Populations

Two hundred fifty-one pools of mosquitoes were caught in 15 separate trap sites in parks of Essex County, New Jersey, and examined for the presence of hepatitis B antigen (HB Ag). Ten of the pools were HB Ag-positive. These were found at trap sites in parks adjacent to areas of high population density and low economic level, after periods of crowding over a weekend. Pools obtained from low population density, high socioeconomic areas were uniformly HB Ag-negative. The possible role of HB Ag-positive mosquitoes in transmission of viral hepatitis depends on the degree of mosquito infestation and the epidemiological characteristics of the human population involved. (JAMA229:1627-1629, 1974)

Hepatitis B antigen in urban-caught mosquitoes.

THE prevalence of Australia Au(1) antigen in apparently healthy individuals is high in the tropics and low in temperate climates1. Genetic factors have been incriminated1; but Prince2 suggested that insects might be vectors. This study was undertaken to find out the role of the common bloodsucking mosquitoes in Ibadan, Nigeria, in the transmission of Au(1) antigen.

Transmission of Australia Au(1) antigen by Culex mosquitoes.

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Transmission of Australia Au(1) antigen by Culex mosquitoes.