University of Costa Rica

About: University of Costa Rica is a education organization based out in San José, Costa Rica. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Venom. The organization has 9817 authors who have published 16781 publications receiving 238208 citations. The organization is also known as: UCR & Universidad de Costa Rica.

Effects of local and regional climatic fluctuations on dengue outbreaks in southern Taiwan.

Abstract: Background Southern Taiwan has been a hotspot for dengue fever transmission since 1998. During 2014 and 2015, Taiwan experienced unprecedented dengue outbreaks and the causes are poorly understood. This study aims to investigate the influence of regional and local climate conditions on the incidence of dengue fever in Taiwan, as well as to develop a climate-based model for future forecasting. Methodology/principle findings Historical time-series data on dengue outbreaks in southern Taiwan from 1998 to 2015 were investigated. Local climate variables were analyzed using a distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM), and the model of best fit was used to predict dengue incidence between 2013 and 2015. The cross-wavelet coherence approach was used to evaluate the regional El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) effects on dengue incidence and local climate variables. The DLNM results highlighted the important non-linear and lag effects of minimum temperature and precipitation. Minimum temperature above 23°C or below 17°C can increase dengue incidence rate with lag effects of 10 to 15 weeks. Moderate to high precipitation can increase dengue incidence rates with a lag of 10 or 20 weeks. The model of best fit successfully predicted dengue transmission between 2013 and 2015. The prediction accuracy ranged from 0.7 to 0.9, depending on the number of weeks ahead of the prediction. ENSO and IOD were associated with nonstationary inter-annual patterns of dengue transmission. IOD had a greater impact on the seasonality of local climate conditions. Conclusions/significance Our findings suggest that dengue transmission can be affected by regional and local climatic fluctuations in southern Taiwan. The climate-based model developed in this study can provide important information for dengue early warning systems in Taiwan. Local climate conditions might be influenced by ENSO and IOD, to result in unusual dengue outbreaks.

Smiling in the rain: Seven reasons to be positive about uncertainty in hydrological modelling

Abstract: Smiling in the rain : Seven reasons to be positive about uncertainty in hydrological modelling

Biology and Ethology of Triatoma Dimidiata (Latreille, 1811). III. Habitat and blood sources

Abstract: Of 3459 specimens of Triatoma dimidiata found in and around 198 houses in an endemic Chagas' disease area in Costa Rica, most of those captured indoors were concentrated near the beds. In the periphery of the houses these insects were more common in stacks of firewood; they were also found in firewood being carried inside. Within a radius of 1000 m from the nearest house, T. dimidiata was also found in hollow trees, mainly those inhabited by opossums. Precipitin tests revealed that human blood was the most common in the gut content of the bugs (63.7% for those captured indoors and 21.9% for those outdoors), followed in descending order by blood from dog, rat (or mouse), chicken, and opossum. This does not indicate a preference for man but rather that he is the most available host. Mobility of T. dimidiata is indicated by the fact that human blood was found in those captured outside which presumably came from indoor populations. Blood from other hosts including cold-blooded animals, either alone or in combination, was also identified in some T. dimidiata . One bug contained blood from 6 different hosts. Rat and opossum bloods were more common in T. cruzi-positive insects whereas blood of chicken and toad were more frequent in the negative groups. The concurrent finding of human and or domestic animal and opossum blood in some T. dimidiata , plus the natural association of the marsupial and T. dimidiata in Costa Rica, is strong evidence of a link between the wild and the domestic cycles of T. cruzi .