Medical Entomology Practice Flashcards

These vocabulary flashcards cover the fundamental definitions, classifications, disease vectors, and control measures associated with Medical Entomology as detailed in the lecture transcript.

Taxonomy

Derived from the Greek words taxis (agreement) and nomos (law).

Entomology

The study of biology and ecology of arthropods, the most abundant form of animal life on earth.

Medical Entomology

The branch of science that deals with arthropods that cause disease or that serve as vectors (carrier) of organisms that cause disease in humans.

Direct Contact Transmission

A method of spread where arthropods are directly transferred from man to man through close contact, such as scabies.

Mechanical Transmission

The process where a disease agent is transmitted mechanically by an arthropod, such as the transmission of typhoid or food poisoning by the housefly.

Biological Transmission

Occurs when a disease agent multiplies or undergoes developmental change (with or without multiplication) within the arthropod host.

Phylum Arthropoda

Derived from arthro (joint) and poda (foot); it is the most numerous phylum containing over one million invertebrate species.

Anopheles stephensi

A mosquito species that acts as a vector for Benign tertian malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax.

Plasmodium falciparum

The causative agent of Malignant tertian malaria, transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes.

Culex fatigans

A mosquito species that transmits Filariasis (Wuchereia Bancroft) and Encephalitis (ARBO virus).

Aedes Aegypti

Known as the yellow fever mosquito; it spreads yellow fever, dengue fever, chikungunya, and Zika fever.

Phlebotomus Papatasii

A species of Sand fly that transmits Sand fly fever caused by the ARBO Virus.

Pediculus humans var capitus

The Head louce which acts as a vector for Trench fever caused by Rochalimaea Quintana.

Musca Domestica

The House Fly, which mechanically transmits diseases including Cholera, Typhoid, Bacillary Dysentery, and Poliomyelitis.

Sarcoptes scabei

Also known as the itch mite; it causes scabies in humans and mange in animals by burrowing into the epidermis.

Glossina spp.

The Tsetse fly genus, which serves as the vector for African sleeping sickness (human African trypanosomiasis).

Simulium damnosum

The Black Fly, which is the vector for river blindness (onchocerciasis) caused by the parasitic worm Onchocerca volvulus.

Trombicula Deliensi

A spider-like arthropod (mite) that serves as a vector for Scrub typhus in Asia and the South Pacific.

Pyrethrum

A contact poison effective against household pests with a rapid lysing action that is harmless to man and domestic animals when used with care.

Paris Green

An organophosphorus compound used specifically as an anopheles larvicide.

Gambusia Affinis

A small larvivorous fish used in biological control that feeds on mosquito larvae.

Biocides

Chemical substances or microorganisms intended to destroy, deter, or exert a controlling effect on harmful organisms by chemical or natural means.

Indoor Residual Spray (IRS)

A chemical control method using recommended insecticides to manage mosquito populations.

Fumigation

The process of killing arthropods by gaseous agents such as Hydro-cyanic acid (HCN) or Sulpher dioxide gas.