Fig. 23
Pathway 21 Human health: Potentially altered anatomy, or host-seeking behaviour, in dsxFCRISPRh transgenics could increase the transmission of human diseases, including lymphatic filariasis (LF). This pathway is about the efficiency of transmission, so any change in anatomical characteristics in the transgenics may increase the biting or probing rate or might increase the transmission rate from a given biting rate. Host seeking behavioural alteration is defined here as preferences for sources of blood meals based primarily on olfactory cues. After malaria, lymphatic filariasis is the most burdensome disease transmitted by species of An. gambiae. For example, in Burkina Faso, Malaria accounts for 17.96 % of total DALYs vs. 0.29 % for total DALYs for LF, 0.05 % of total DALYs for yellow fever and 0.0094 % of total DALYs for dengue [101]. Direct laboratory assessment of the vector competence of An. gambiae for the most common LF parasite Wuchereria bancrofti has not reliably been established [102]. However, as dsxFCRISPRh transgenic mosquitoes have reported anatomical alterations [17], and the cibarial armature is implicated in transmission of LF to mosquitoes, its anatomy should be examined in transgenics [103,104,105]. The components of vectorial capacity (V) that would be affected in this pathway are shown in red in the equation