River Blindness:
Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) study on blackflies offers hope for river blindness control, Researchers worked on four species collected from eight locations in the central Himalayan region
- A new study by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) has introduced DNA barcoding to accurately identify blackfly species—the carriers of Onchocerca volvulus, the parasitic worm that causes river blindness (onchocerciasis).
- This innovation is expected to enhance disease control and vector management, especially in vulnerable ecological zones like the central Himalaya
- River blindness is a neglected tropical disease (NTD) caused by the parasitic worm Onchocerca volvulus.
- The disease is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected blackflies belonging to the genus Simulium, which breed in fast-flowing rivers and streams.
- Symptoms include intense skin itching, disfiguring skin changes, and in advanced cases, permanent vision loss or blindness.
- Globally, it is second only to trachoma in causing infection-related blindness, especially affecting rural populations in sub-Saharan Africa, Yemen, and parts of Latin America.
- Treatment relies on Mass Drug Administration (MDA) using ivermectin, with a minimum 80% therapeutic coverage required for effective control.
- According to the World Health Organization (WHO), river blindness remains one of the most neglected tropical diseases, especially in remote and rural areas
