4 results on '"Chen, Minhao"'
Search Results
2. Assessing Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) for Evaluation of Aedes aegypti Population Age Structure.
- Author
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Joy, Teresa, Chen, Minhao, Arnbrister, Joshua, Williamson, Daniel, Li, Shujuan, Nair, Shakunthala, Brophy, Maureen, Garcia, Valerie Madera, Walker, Kathleen, Ernst, Kacey, Gouge, Dawn H., Carrière, Yves, and Riehle, Michael A.
- Subjects
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AEDES aegypti , *OLDER people , *POPULATION aging , *MOSQUITO vectors , *MOSQUITOES , *SALIVARY glands , *NEAR infrared spectroscopy - Abstract
Simple Summary: Mosquito-borne pathogens require the obligate mosquito vector to shuttle the pathogen between vertebrate hosts. This typically requires the mosquito to acquire the pathogen from an initial bloodmeal, have the pathogen mature and reach the mosquito salivary glands and be transmitted to another vertebrate host in the saliva during subsequent blood feedings. Depending on the pathogen, this incubation period can be up to two weeks. Considering the short lifespan of adult mosquitoes, this means that the oldest mosquitoes are responsible for a disproportionate amount of pathogen transmission. Knowing the age structure of mosquito populations in the field could provide important insights in the likelihood of pathogen transmission occurring. Unfortunately, the current methods of age grading mosquitoes in the field are limited by accuracy, technical challenges and cost. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has been shown to be capable of age grading large numbers of mosquitoes cost effectively, although accurate age predictions are still a challenge. In this work, we compared the ability of NIRS to age grade field-collected mosquitoes with two other methods, parity and SCP1 transcript expression. While we did not find NIRS to be suitable for predicting the precise age of individual field-collected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, we believe that this technique has the potential to monitor changes in the age structure of Ae. aegypti populations over time. Given that older Aedes aegypti (L.) mosquitoes typically pose the greatest risk of pathogen transmission, the capacity to age grade wild Ae. aegypti mosquito populations would be a valuable tool in monitoring the potential risk of arboviral transmission. Here, we compared the effectiveness of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to age grade field-collected Ae. aegypti with two alternative techniques—parity analysis and transcript abundance of the age-associated gene SCP1. Using lab-reared mosquitoes of known ages from three distinct populations maintained as adults under laboratory or semi-field conditions, we developed and validated four NIRS models for predicting the age of field-collected Ae. aegypti. To assess the accuracy of these models, female Ae. aegypti mosquitoes were collected from Maricopa County, AZ, during the 2017 and 2018 monsoon season, and a subset were age graded using the three different age-grading techniques. For both years, each of the four NIRS models consistently graded parous mosquitoes as significantly older than nulliparous mosquitoes. Furthermore, a significant positive linear association occurred between SCP1 and NIRS age predictions in seven of the eight year/model combinations, although considerable variation in the predicted age of individual mosquitoes was observed. Our results suggest that although the NIRS models were not adequate in determining the age of individual field-collected mosquitoes, they have the potential to quickly and cost effectively track changes in the age structure of Ae. aegypti populations across locations and over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2022
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
3. Identification of Conservation Priority Areas and a Protection Network for the Siberian Musk Deer (Moschus moschiferus L.) in Northeast China.
- Author
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Zhang, Chao, Fan, Yuwei, Chen, Minhao, Xia, Wancai, Wang, Jiadong, Zhan, Zhenjie, Wang, Wenlong, Khan, Tauheed Ullah, Wu, Shuhong, and Luan, Xiaofeng
- Subjects
PROTECTED areas ,CORRIDORS (Ecology) ,WILDLIFE conservation ,DEER ,NATIONAL parks & reserves ,NUMBERS of species - Abstract
Simple Summary: Siberian musk deer (Moschus moschiferus L.) populations and their habitat decreased significantly over the past decades due to unsustainable, long-term hunting and deforestation. To support the species' conservation, we assessed its potential distribution, conservation priority areas, core patch fragmentation, and potential connectivity corridors in Northeast China. We concluded that large areas of a high-quality M. moschiferus habitat with low fragmentation and low human influence remain in the northern Greater Khingan Mountains. In contrast, a habitat in the Lesser Khingan Mountains and the Changbai Mountains was highly fragmented and highly influenced by human activity. The Greater Khingan Mountains offer a suitable habitat for the recovery of M. moschiferus populations in Northeast China. These findings offer recommendations to support the Chinese government's goal of establishing protected area systems with national parks in Northeast China. Species conservation actions are guided by available information on the biogeography of the protected species. In this study, we integrated the occurrence data of Siberian musk deer (Moschusmoschiferus L.) collected from 2019 to 2021 with species distribution models to estimate the species' potential distribution in Northeast China. We then identified conservation priority areas using a core-area zonation algorithm. In addition, we analyzed core patch fragmentation using FRAGSTATS. Lastly, we identified potential connectivity corridors and constructed a potential protection network based on the least-cost path and the circuit theory. The results showed concentrations of M. moschiferus in the northern Greater Khingan Mountains, the southeastern Lesser Khingan Mountains, and the eastern Changbai Mountains, with a potential distribution area of 127,442.14 km
2 . Conservation priority areas included 41 core patches with an area of 106,306.43 km2 . Patch fragmentation mainly occurred in the Changbai Mountains and the Lesser Khingan Mountains. We constructed an ecological network composed of 41 core patches and 69 linkages for M. moschiferus in Northeast China. The results suggest that the Greater Khingan Mountains represent the most suitable area to maintain the stability of M. moschiferus populations in Northeast China. Considering the high habitat quality requirements of M. moschiferus and its endangered status, we propose that the Chinese government accelerates the construction of the Greater Khingan Mountains National Park and the Lesser Khingan Mountains National Park and enlarges the Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park to address the fragmentation of protected areas and the habitat of M. moschiferus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]- Published
- 2022
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
4. Use of GIS and Remote Sensing Data to Understand the Impacts of Land Use/Land Cover Changes (LULCC) on Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) Habitat in Pakistan.
- Author
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Khan, Tauheed Ullah, Mannan, Abdul, Hacker, Charlotte E., Ahmad, Shahid, Amir Siddique, Muhammad, Khan, Barkat Ullah, Din, Emad Ud, Chen, Minhao, Zhang, Chao, Nizami, Moazzam, Luan, Xiaofeng, and Martellozzo, Federico
- Abstract
Habitat degradation and species range contraction due to land use/land cover changes (LULCC) is a major threat to global biodiversity. The ever-growing human population has trespassed deep into the natural habitat of many species via the expansion of agricultural lands and infrastructural development. Carnivore species are particularly at risk, as they demand conserved and well-connected habitat with minimum to no anthropogenic disturbance. In Pakistan, the snow leopard (Panthera uncia) is found in three mountain ranges—the Himalayas, Hindukush, and Karakoram. Despite this being one of the harshest environments on the planet, a large population of humans reside here and exploit surrounding natural resources to meet their needs. Keeping in view this exponentially growing population and its potential impacts on at-risk species like the snow leopard, we used geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing with the aim of identifying and quantifying LULCC across snow leopard range in Pakistan for the years 2000, 2010, and 2020. A massive expansion of 1804.13 km
2 (163%) was observed in the built-up area during the study period. Similarly, an increase of 3177.74 km2 (153%) was observed in agricultural land. Barren mountain land increased by 12,368.39 km2 (28%) while forest land decreased by 2478.43 km2 (28%) and area with snow cover decreased by 14,799.83 km2 (52%). Drivers of these large-scale changes are likely the expanding human population and climate change. The overall quality and quantity of snow leopard habitat in Pakistan has drastically changed in the last 20 years and could be compromised. Swift and direct conservation actions to monitor LULCC are recommended to reduce any associated negative impacts on species preservation efforts. In the future, a series of extensive field surveys and studies should be carried out to monitor key drivers of LULCC across the observed area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]- Published
- 2021
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
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