In July, the DOLF team and collaborators at the University of Indonesia published two new manuscripts highlighting zoonotic and zoophilic filarial species in the Belitung district of Indonesia. Long-term collaborators Drs. Peter Fischer and Taniawati Supali are leading research that will help to better understand the role of animals in the transmission and elimination of filarial parasites.
Previous DOLF studies have identified an animal reservoir of Brugia malayi, the filarial parasite that causes lymphatic filariasis (LF) in Belitung. This has raised concern for the impact of mass drug administration (MDA) of the human population to eliminate LF from the region. In 2021, surveillance for LF in Belitung revealed that adults were again LF positive, even after five annual rounds of MDA. This prompted two additional rounds of MDA using a triple drug approach developed by DOLF. While the MDA was effective at treating the parasites in the blood, new LF positive individuals continued to show up in follow-up surveys. This finding suggests that MDA alone may not be enough to eliminate LF from regions with potential transmission of LF from animals to humans. Additional intensified strategies may need to be implemented in these special interest zones. Read more about this finding in the recent publication led by Dr. Supali of University of Indonesia, Can mass drug administration alone eliminate lymphatic filariasis in areas of Indonesia with zoophilic Brugia malayi?