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Student 10-Minute Paper

Physiology, Biochemistry, and Toxicology

Student Competition

Student

Undergrad Competition PBT: Biochemistry, Physiology, and Toxicology

Novel management of arthropod vectors to reduce incidence of zoonotic disease transmission

Monday, November 6, 2023
11:06 AM – 11:18 AM ET
Location: Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, Azalea 3
In-Person Student Competition
Zoonotic diseases are caused by transferring bacteria or viruses between humans and animals. Of the different opportunities for exposure, a vector-borne method entails being bitten by insects that feed on blood and transmit pathogens into the bloodstream via saliva. Interruption of the enzymes responsible for the phenylalanine-tyrosine degradation pathway has been demonstrated with the use of a human drug, Nitisinone. Direct and indirect application of Nitisinone from feeding on Nitisinone-treated cattle was thus sought to kill the arthropod and prevent disease transmission. This study aims to investigate if Nitisinone, or (2-(2-nitro-4-trifluoromethylbenzoyl)-1,3-cyclohexanedione, is an alternative antiparasitic that disrupts a critical metabolic pathway for hematophagous insects to digest bloodmeals. Such study includes the use of stable fly survival when fed with blood or sugar dosed with the drug and rumen fluid degradation to observe drug digestion in cattle. Further, calves will be administered intravenously nitisinone at scaled doses and blood collection will be done to analyze the drug levels in the blood. Drug presence in the calf blood will be monitored after treatment with further feeding of the collected blood to isolate stable fly populations. Decreased survival of treated insects that may carry infectious diseases would prevent the transmission of prevalent zoonotic diseases like malaria and West Nile Virus and enable livestock to be raised without parasitic hindrance.