Polymerase chain reaction diagnosis and the changing pattern of vector ecology and malaria transmission dynamics in Papua New Guinea

The ecology and behavior of most of the 11 known members of the Anopheles punctulatus group remain unresolved and only the morphologic species An. farauti, An. koliensis, and An. punctulatus are known as vectors of malaria in Papua New Guinea. Of 1,582 mosquitoes examined morphologically, 737 were identified as An. farauti s.l., 719 as An. koliensis, and 126 as An. punctulatus. All specimens identified morphologically as An. punctulatus were shown to be An. punctulatus by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis, but the An. farauti and An. koliensis morphotypes consisted of three or more species including An. farauti s.s., An. farauti No. 2, and An. farauti No. 4. The biting cycles and role in malaria transmission of some of these species are described here for the first time. We also show evidence that An. koliensis could be a sub-complex of two or more species. The epidemiologic implications of our findings are discussed.