[Mosquito Surveillance at Airports and Seaports to Prevent and Control Emerging Mosquito-borne Diseases in Korea, 2023].

In recent years, global warming, expanding international trade, and changes in human behavior have increased the risk of invasive mosquito species entering the country via airports and seaports. In response, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency has monitored mosquito species and disease-causing viruses within mosquitoes at 29 airport and seaport-associated locations in the Republic of Korea (ROK) twice a month from June to October. BG-Sentinel and black light traps were used to collect mosquitoes. The collected mosquitoes were identified and tested for flaviviruses (causative agents of Dengue fever, Yellow fever, West Nile fever, Japanese encephalitis, and Zika virus infection). A total of 4,721 mosquitoes representing 14 species were collected, including Aedes albopictus, Culex pipiens, and Aedes vexans. The dominance of each mosquito species was 54.6% for Culex pipiens, which is vector for West Nile fever; 12.1% for Culex triaeniorhynchus, which transmits Japanese encephalitis; and 10.4% for Aedes albopictus, which transmits Dengue fever, Yellow fever, and Zika virus infection. No non-native species (Aedes aegypti or Haemagogus spp.) were identified. All mosquitoes, except Anopheles spp., were tested for flaviviruses, and Japanese encephalitis virus was detected in Culex pipiens from one location. The National Quarantine Stations and Health Centers were notified of these surveillance results, which could be useful for effective mosquito control. This project has provided a basis for the control of invasive mosquitoes by preventing the introduction of mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases in ROK, and demonstrated the value of monitoring the occurrence of mosquitoes in airports and seaports in the quarantine area.