Publications

17 results

1. 2026

   Article

   Col-Ovo: Smartphone-based artificial intelligence for rapid counting of Aedes mosquito eggs under field conditions

   Juan Almanza, Diego Montenegro. Parasites & Vectors (2026).

   Col-Ovo is an AI tool for automated counting of Aedes aegypti eggs from smartphone images. A YOLOv11m model was trained on 275 oviposition substrates captured in situ without preprocessing. The system shows strong agreement with expert counts (Spearman ρ = 0.91; Lin's ρc = 0.89), reducing processing time from ~15 minutes to under 3 seconds per sample. The platform requires no specialized hardware and integrates with OviLab to strengthen vector surveillance for dengue, Zika, and chikungunya.

2. 2026

   Article

   Programmatic implementation of Ovicol ovitraps for Aedes spp. control in Colombia: operational adherence, effectiveness and comparisons with AGO and BG-Sentinel traps

   Laureano Mosquera, Juan Osorio, Orley Herrera, Diego Montenegro. Parasites & Vectors, 49 (2026).

   Evaluation of a low-cost, handcrafted ovitrap (Ovicol) using two types of bioattractants for controlling disease-carrying mosquitoes in Colombia. Ovicol traps outperformed AGO in Aedes detection (65.2% vs. 30.8%) and demonstrated superior field stability versus BG-Sentinel. The approach offers cost-effective, operationally simple, and eco-sustainable mosquito surveillance with potential for broader public health implementation.

3. 2026

   Article

   Estándares sanitarios en la industria agroalimentaria colombiana: Un nuevo modelo de evaluación

   Sanitary standards in the Colombian agri-food industry: a new evaluation model

   Nancy Monsalve, Diego Montenegro, Johnny Corredor. Revista de la Universidad del Zulia, 17(48), 97-115 (2026).

   A model for evaluating compliance with the sanitary standards set by Colombia's Good Manufacturing Practices regulations, built on 31 criteria across six chapters and applied to Invima inspection records from 57 agri-food companies in Meta. Average compliance was 74.6% (SD 7.85%), with strengths in product labelling (98.25%) and personnel health (90.30%), and critical gaps in traceability and recall (60.17%), cleaning and disinfection (54.04%) and sampling (55.86%). No differences appeared by product type or sanitary risk: the challenges are cross-cutting.

4. 2025

   Article

   Ovitrampas artesanales y agua caliente: estrategia auxiliar para el control del mosquito Aedes aegypti en Colombia

   Handmade ovitraps and hot water: an auxiliary strategy for the control of the Aedes aegypti mosquito in Colombia

   Katherine Arrieta-Ángel, Keylin Polo-Silva, Natalia Ospino-Sierra, Dayan Corpa-Choperena, Elkin Monterrosa, et al.. Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública, 49 (2025).

   Evaluation of homemade ovitraps as a sustainable vector control strategy for Aedes aegypti aligned with sustainable development goals. White and black traps in plastic containers were tested with three treatments over 15 weeks in Colombia. Ovitraps with alpiste seeds, costing under 20 cents USD, achieved positivity indices over 78% and captured ~385 eggs per trap per week. About 100 traps eliminated 67,868 eggs and prevented development of 48,458 adult mosquitoes. Hot water immersion proved most effective for egg destruction.

5. 2024

   Article

   Wolbachia-based emerging strategies for control of vector-transmitted disease

   Diego Montenegro, Gerardo Cortés-Cortés, María Guadalupe Balbuena-Alonso, Caison Warner, Manel Camps. Acta Tropica, 260, 107410 (2024).

6. 2022

   Article

   ColDengue: A novel surveillance and control tool for Aedes aegypti

   Lorena Berbeo, Christopher Ramírez, Jaime Daza, Leigdy Barbosa, Diego Montenegro. GSC Advanced Research and Reviews, 12(1), 026–034 (2022).

   ColDengue is a manual surveillance tool for controlling Aedes aegypti. Lab tests showed 41–62.9% effectiveness for larvae removal and 62.9–91.3% for pupae. Field trials in Villavicencio, Colombia removed >10,000 larvae and 1,950 pupae across two neighborhoods, with >90% community acceptance, costing under $3 USD and lasting six months with weekly use. Recommended for integration into urban arbovirus control programs.

7. 2022

   Article

   Los alimentos y la enfermedad de Chagas: estrategias para disminuir el riesgo de infección con Trypanosoma cruzi

   Food and Chagas disease: strategies to reduce the risk of infection with Trypanosoma cruzi

   Nancy Monsalve, Diego Montenegro. Revista Xauxa, 3(6) (2022).

   Foodborne illness is an everyday public health problem, and Chagas disease is one of them. Trypanosoma cruzi is endemic in 21 countries of the Americas and now sits among the ten food-related pathogens of greatest health, social and economic concern: contaminated food may account for between 40% and 70% of annual acute cases in several South American countries. The article sets out five good food-handling practices to cut the risk in endemic areas.

8. 2021

   Article

   Genetic diversity and population structure of Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato across different regions of Colombia

   Luisa Páez-Triana, Marina Muñoz, Giovanny Herrera, Darwin A. Moreno-Pérez, Gabriel A. Tafur-Gómez, et al.. Parasites & Vectors, 14(1), 424 (2021).

   Examined the genetic diversity of R. sanguineus s.l. in eight departmental regions across Colombia. All specimens clustered within the tropical lineage, identifying it as the main circulating lineage in Colombia, with a general lack of genetic structure except for the Amazonas region.

9. 2021

   Article

   Reproducibility of rapid diagnostic tests for Trypanosoma cruzi infection in endemic areas of Colombia

   Andrés C. Rojas-Gulloso, Diego Montenegro Lopez, Andrés González-Zapata, Liliana Sánchez-Lerma, Wilman Suarez-Izquierdo, et al.. Revista Habanera de Ciencias Médicas, 20(6), e3644 (2021).

   Evaluated the SD BIOLINE Chagas Ab rapid diagnostic test in 151 indigenous volunteers from three ethnic groups in Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia. 19.2% seroreactivity overall, with the highest infection rate (62.5%) in the Wiwa community. The test demonstrated 100% sensitivity, specificity and concordance vs. two gold-standard ELISA methods, supporting its use as point-of-care screening in remote endemic areas.

10. 2020

    Article

    Uso de tecnologías en el lugar de atención para el manejo de la pandemia por COVID-19 en Colombia

    Use of point-of-care technologies for the management of the COVID-19 pandemic in Colombia

    Diego Montenegro-López. Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública, 44 (2020).

    Healthcare model integrating point-of-care technologies and AI. A theoretical model tested one million users accessing CoronApp-Colombia to collect personal data, signs, symptoms, and epidemiological links compatible with COVID-19. AI and data science techniques were applied in a virtual situation room. Compatible users would be prioritized for rapid anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody tests with PCR confirmation. Positive cases would undergo spatial statistical analysis to identify geographic infection clusters for active contact tracing.

11. 2020

    Article

    Usefulness of autocidal gravid ovitraps for the surveillance and control of Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) in eastern Colombia

    D. Montenegro, L. Martinez, K. Tay, T. Hernandez, D. Noriega, et al.. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 34(4), 379–384 (2020).

    Evaluated autocidal gravid ovitraps (AGOs) in a dengue-endemic region of Colombia. Over 8 weeks, traps detected high Aedes aegypti densities with >80% positivity and ~6 individuals caught per trap weekly. Community acceptance exceeded 95% with 89% adherence. Findings demonstrate AGOs are a useful tool for A. aegypti surveillance.

12. 2018

    Book chapter

    One World, One Health Challenge: The Holistic Understanding of Rickettsiosis Integrating Multi-Criteria Analysis Techniques and Spatial Statistics

    Diego Montenegro, Ana Paula da Cunha, Ingrid Machado, Liliane Duraes, Stefan Vilges de Oliveira, et al.. Spatial Analysis, Modelling and Planning (IntechOpen) (2018).

13. 2017

    Article

    Evaluating the Surveillance System for Spotted Fever in Brazil Using Machine-Learning Techniques

    Diego Montenegro Lopez, Flávio Luis de Mello, Cristina Maria Giordano Dias, Paula Almeida, Milton Araújo, et al.. Frontiers in Public Health, 5, 323 (2017).

14. 2017

    Article

    Multi-criteria decision analysis and spatial statistic: an approach to determining human vulnerability to vector transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi

    Diego Montenegro, Ana Paula da Cunha, Simone Ladeia-Andrade, Mauricio Vera, Marcel Pedroso, et al.. Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, 112(10) (2017).

    Multi-criteria decision analysis (PROMETHEE/GAIA) combined with spatial statistics to evaluate vulnerability to Chagas transmission across Colombian municipalities. Five primary determinants were considered: house conditions, triatomine presence, hosts/reservoirs, ecotopes, and community knowledge. The triatominae indicator carried the largest weight (44.96%) while socio-cultural factors contributed 7.15%. The model classified 46 areas, with ~24% lowest- and ~26% highest-vulnerability, and proved cost-effective without requiring human serological data.

15. 2017

    Article

    Spotted Fever: Epidemiology and Vector-Rickettsia-Host Relationship in Rio de Janeiro State

    Diego C. Montenegro, Karla Bitencourth, Stefan V. de Oliveira, Ana P. Borsoi, Karen M. Cardoso, et al.. Frontiers in Microbiology, 8, 505 (2017).

    Analysis of spotted fever transmission in Rio de Janeiro State (1980–2014). Across 42% of municipalities, 990 SF cases were registered, including 116 confirmed by serology (RIFI) or PCR. Disease presentation shifted from rural to increasingly urban contexts. Amblyomma sculptum was the only species found parasitizing humans with the genes of the causative agent, establishing it as the primary human vector for Rickettsia rickettsii in Brazil.

16. 2016

    Article

    Comparative growth of spotted fever group Rickettsia spp. strains in Vero cells

    Arannadia Barbosa Silva, Myrian Morato Duarte, Vinicius Figueiredo Vizzoni, Ana Íris de Lima Duré, Diego Montenegro Lopéz, et al.. Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, 111(8) (2016).

    Short communication comparing the kinetic growth of three spotted fever group Rickettsia species in Vero cell culture over 72 hours. R. rhipicephali showed faster replication compared to R. rickettsii and R. parkeri.

17. 2016

    Technical report

    Estrategia para determinar la línea base en áreas de interrupción vectorial de la enfermedad de Chagas

    Strategy to determine the baseline in areas of vector interruption of Chagas disease

    Diego Montenegro, et al.. Organización Panamericana de la Salud (PAHO/OPS) (2016).