Seroprevalence of Antibodies Against Legionella Species in Northeastern Australian Blood Donors, 2016 and 2023.

Background: In 2021-2022, Queensland, Australia observed an increase in Legionnaire's disease cases, predominantly due to Legionella longbeachae. This study assessed seroprevalence at time points 2016 and 2023, representing before and after the higher incidence and explored if demographic, environmental and geographical factors associated with legionellosis seroprevalence.

Methods: A total of 1001 human plasma samples (496 from 2016/505 from 2023) were analysed for the presence of Legionella antibodies (IgG) using indirect immunofluorescence assays.

Global malaria predictors at a localized scale.

Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by parasites transmitted by mosquitoes. In 2021, more than 247 million cases of malaria were reported worldwide, with an estimated 619,000 deaths. While malaria incidence has decreased globally in recent decades, some public health gains have plateaued, and many endemic hotspots still face high transmission rates.

Human footprint is associated with shifts in the assemblages of major vector-borne diseases.

Predicting how increasing intensity of human-environment interactions affects pathogen transmission is essential to anticipate changing disease risks and identify appropriate mitigation strategies. Vector-borne diseases (VBDs) are highly responsive to environmental changes, but such responses are notoriously difficult to isolate because pathogen transmission depends on a suite of ecological and social responses in vectors and hosts that may differ across species. Here we use the emerging tools of cumulative pressure mapping and machine learning to better understand how the occurrence of six medically important VBDs, differing in ecology from sylvatic to urban, respond to multidimensional effects of human pressure.

Detection of Leishmania (Mundinia) macropodum (Kinetoplastida: Trypanosomatidae) and heterologous Leishmania species antibodies among blood donors in a region of Australia with marsupial Leishmania endemicity.

Objectives: The Australian Leishmania (Mundinia) macropodum parasite causes cutaneous leishmaniasis among marsupial species. Although cutaneous leishmaniasis is a major public health burden worldwide, it is not clear if humans are naturally exposed to the unique L. macropodum.

Not all mosquitoes are created equal: A synthesis of vector competence experiments reinforces virus associations of Australian mosquitoes.

The globalization of mosquito-borne arboviral diseases has placed more than half of the human population at risk. Understanding arbovirus ecology, including the role individual mosquito species play in virus transmission cycles, is critical for limiting disease. Canonical virus-vector groupings, such as Aedes- or Culex-associated flaviviruses, have historically been defined using virus detection in field-collected mosquitoes, mosquito feeding patterns, and vector competence, which quantifies the intrinsic ability of a mosquito to become infected with and transmit a virus during a subsequent blood feed.

Human-mediated impacts on biodiversity and the consequences for zoonotic disease spillover.

Human-mediated changes to natural ecosystems have consequences for both ecosystem and human health. Historically, efforts to preserve or restore 'biodiversity' can seem to be in opposition to human interests. However, the integration of biodiversity conservation and public health has gained significant traction in recent years, and new efforts to identify solutions that benefit both environmental and human health are ongoing.

Physiology and ecology combine to determine host and vector importance for Ross River virus.

Identifying the key vector and host species that drive the transmission of zoonotic pathogens is notoriously difficult but critical for disease control. We present a nested approach for quantifying the importance of host and vectors that integrates species' physiological competence with their ecological traits. We apply this framework to a medically important arbovirus, Ross River virus (RRV), in Brisbane, Australia.

How will mosquitoes adapt to climate warming?

The potential for adaptive evolution to enable species persistence under a changing climate is one of the most important questions for understanding impacts of future climate change. Climate adaptation may be particularly likely for short-lived ectotherms, including many pest, pathogen, and vector species. For these taxa, estimating climate adaptive potential is critical for accurate predictive modeling and public health preparedness.

Mosquito-Borne Viruses and Non-Human Vertebrates in Australia: A Review.

Mosquito-borne viruses are well recognized as a global public health burden amongst humans, but the effects on non-human vertebrates is rarely reported. Australia, houses a number of endemic mosquito-borne viruses, such as Ross River virus, Barmah Forest virus, and Murray Valley encephalitis virus. In this review, we synthesize the current state of mosquito-borne viruses impacting non-human vertebrates in Australia, including diseases that could be introduced due to local mosquito distribution.

Utilising a novel surveillance system to enhance field screening activities for the leishmaniases.

Over the last decade, an arbovirus surveillance system based on the preservation of nucleic acids (RNA/DNA) has been developed using Flinders Technology Associates (FTA) cards. Soaked in honey, FTA cards are applied in the field to detect arboviruses expectorated during mosquito sugar feeding. This technique has been shown to be inexpensive and efficient, and the implementation of this system for detecting parasites could be of international importance.

Species Traits and Hotspots Associated with Ross River Virus Infection in Nonhuman Vertebrates in South East Queensland.

Ross River virus (RRV) is a mosquito-borne zoonotic arbovirus associated with high public health and economic burdens across Australia, but particularly in South East Queensland (SEQ). Despite this high burden, humans are considered incidental hosts. Transmission of RRV is maintained among mosquitoes and many nonhuman vertebrate reservoir hosts, although the relative contributions of each of these hosts are unclear.

Utilising a novel surveillance system to investigate species of () (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) as the suspected vectors of (Kinetoplastida: Trypanosomatidae) in the Darwin region of Australia.

Up until recently, Australia was considered free of due to the absence of phlebotomine sandfly species (Diptera: Phlebotominae) known to transmit parasites in other parts of the world. The discovery of () (Kinetoplastida: Trypanosomatidae) in Northern Australia sparked questions as to the existence of alternative vectors of . This has added to the complexity of fully understanding the parasite's interaction with its vector, which is known to be very specific.

Associations Between Ross River Virus Infection in Humans and Vector-Vertebrate Community Ecology in Brisbane, Australia.

Transmission of vector-borne pathogens can vary in complexity from single-vector, single-host systems through to multivector, multihost vertebrate systems. Understanding the dynamics of transmission is important for disease prevention efforts, but is dependent on disentangling complex interactions within coupled natural systems. Ross River virus (RRV) is a multivector multihost pathogen responsible for the greatest number of notified vector-borne pathogen infections in humans in Australia.