An outbreak of acute encephalitic illness among children is reported from a paddy-growing district of Uttar Pradesh during the monsoon. Pigs reared near the village test positive for the causative virus. The principal vector responsible for transmission in this setting is:
- A Culex quinquefasciatus
- B Culex tritaeniorhynchus ✓
- C Aedes albopictus
- D Mansonia annulifera
Correct answer: B. Culex tritaeniorhynchus
Explanation
Japanese encephalitis in India is transmitted chiefly by Culex tritaeniorhynchus, which belongs to the Culex vishnui group and breeds in rice paddies and flooded fields. Pigs act as amplifier hosts and wading birds as reservoirs. Culex quinquefasciatus is the bancroftian filariasis vector and is only a minor, inefficient JE vector, so it kills that tempting distractor.
Reference: Park's Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine, 27th ed.
High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP
Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.