What Insect Causes Sleeping Sickness?

There are two diseases known as sleeping sickness: equine viral encephalomyelitis and trypanosomiasis. Equine viral encephalomyelitis is a disease with three strains (Eastern, Western and Venezuelan equine encephalitis) that affects North and South America, while trypanosomiasis is seen throughout Africa.

  1. Eastern Equine Encephalitis

    • The Aedes, Coquillettidia, and Culex species of mosquitoes are responsible for the spread of Eastern equine encephalitis, as these are the species of mosquitoes that will feed on birds, then on the horse and human populations.

    Western Equine Encephalitis

    • Western equine encephalitis is spread mostly by the mosquito Culex tarsalis, which feeds on birds and small mammals, then feeds on horses or humans.

    Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis

    • Some of the mosquito species that spread Venezuelan equine encephalitis are the Culex, Mansonia, Psorophora, and Aedes species, with Aedes aegypti mosquitoes mostly responsible for human transmissions.

    Gambian Trypanosomiasis

    • Gambian trypanosomiasis is the trypanosomiasis disease which affects humans and is called sleeping sickness, and is spread by the tsetse fly.

    Trypanosome

    • The tsetse fly causes trypanosomiasis by first biting an animal infected by a trypanosome parasite, then the tsetse fly carries the trypanosome in its saliva to other animals that it bites.