Grantee Research Project Results
Land Use Change and Malaria Transmission in a Highland Area of Uganda
EPA Grant Number: U915234Title: Land Use Change and Malaria Transmission in a Highland Area of Uganda
Investigators: Lindblade, Kimberly A.
Institution: University of Michigan
EPA Project Officer: Packard, Benjamin H
Project Period: January 1, 1997 through January 1, 2000
Project Amount: $102,000
RFA: STAR Graduate Fellowships (1997) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Academic Fellowships , Ecological Indicators/Assessment/Restoration , Fellowship - Ecology
Objective:
The objective of this research project is to investigate the mechanisms by which conversion of papyrus swamps to agricultural land alters malaria transmission in a highland area of Uganda.
Approach:
From December 1997 through July 1998, I measured entomological, parasitological, and climatic indicators in eight villages bordering swamps reclaimed for agriculture, and eight villages located alongside intact swamps to compare differences in malaria transmission parameters related to land use type. Anopheles gambiae mosquito density and anopheline species composition were determined by collecting adult mosquitoes from five houses in each study site twice per month. All mosquitoes were transported back to the United States and were tested for the presence of mosquito parasites and human blood. The entomological inoculation rate, a measurement of the average number of infectious bites an individual received per night, was calculated for each area as the product of the proportion of mosquitoes with malaria parasites and the proportion which had recently fed on human blood. Temperature, humidity, and rainfall were measured in each village to determine whether climatic differences related to land use type existed. Blood slides were taken from suspected malaria patients visiting 5five rural health clinics located in the study area to determine their parasitemia status; the location of the home village for those patients who were parasite- positive will be compared with the location of the home village of those patients who were negative to determine whether proximity to reclaimed swamps is a risk factor for malaria.
Supplemental Keywords:
fellowship, Uganda, land use, land use change, malaria, malaria transmission, land use type, climate, climatic indicators, mosquito, mosquito parasites.Progress and Final Reports:
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.