U.S. Navy Entomologists Train with Cabo Verde to Assess Mosquito-borne Disease Risk

Photo By Lt.Cmdr. Jeff Hertz | 210625-N-ME471-1001 CABO VERDE, Portugal (June 25, 2021) Lt. Tal-Beth Cohen (center left) and Lt. Adam Salyer (center right) demonstrate components of the Navy Entomology Center of Excellence Sea Raven capability to public health professionals from the Cape Verde Armed Forces and National Institute of Public Health. The goal of the collaboration is to expand and exercise NECE’s Project Sea Raven capabilities to better inform force health protection requirements. (U.S. Navy Photo by Lt. Cmdr. Jeff Hertz/Released)  

CABO VERDE, PORTUGAL

08.03.2021

Courtesy Story

Navy and Marine Corps Force Health Protection Command

Entomologists from U.S. Navy Environmental and Preventive Medicine Unit SEVEN (NEPMU-7) and Navy Entomology Center of Excellence (NECE) partnered with the Cabo Verde National Institute of Public Health and the Cabo Verdean Armed Forces to search for disease-causing pathogens in mosquito populations. The goal of the collaboration is to expand and exercise NECE’s Project Sea Raven capabilities to better inform force health protection requirements.

Project Sea Raven is a cutting-edge pathogen surveillance and warfighter protection kit supported by the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division through the Global Emerging Infections Surveillance (GEIS) branch. The kit provides a highly mobile laboratory capability that can be used anywhere in the world our Sailors and Marines may deploy. The capability is considerably important in maritime and resource-restricted environments where laboratory and public health infrastructure is lacking.

“The Biomeme is a portable, practical, and easy to use piece of equipment that will allow the detection of infectious agents like Zika, dengue, malaria, and many other infectious agents in vectors in less than one hour. Cape Verde is an archipelago where molecular diagnostic services are not yet available on all islands. The Biomeme will be an enormous asset to support screening in field investigations, thus supporting the early diagnosis and monitoring of infectious agents and contributing to the prevention and control of diseases.” said Dr. Silvania Veiga Leal, Director of Entomology Cabo Verde National Institute of Public Health.

This was the first of two collection trips the team has scheduled for the year. Despite this trip being in the dry season, the team was able to collect over four hundred mosquitoes from twelve unique sites and demonstrate Sea Raven’s capability to the Cabo Verdean partners. The next two collections will occur during the rainy season when mosquito-borne disease risk will be at its highest.

“The opportunity to collaborate with Cabo Verde’s Institute of Public Health and Armed Forces is of critical importance in accomplishing our mission. Their astute experience led us to mosquito population hot spots where we assisted with ongoing efforts of pathogen surveillance. This partnership will foster improved AFRICOM disease mitigation efforts and may reveal new insights into Cabo Verde vector presence and management. We appreciate their welcoming support.” Lt. Adam Salyer, Director of Science, NECE.

Ultimately, the team is seeking opportunity to further integrate knowledge, resources, and shared experiences to enhance their respective abilities to respond and prevent public health and force protection crises.

For more information about NEPMU-7 and NECE, visit https://www.med.navy.mil/sites/nmcphc/nepmu-7/Pages/default.aspx and http://www.med.navy.mil/sites/nmcphc/nece/Pages/default.aspx. For more news from Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center, visit https://www.dvidshub.net/unit/NMCPH.

• Date Taken: 08.03.2021
• Date Posted: 08.03.2021 12:33
• Story ID: 402340
• Location: CABO VERDE, PT