Luring the vector: A systematic review of sand fly attractants

Sand flies are vectors of Leishmania spp. parasites, responsible for causing leishmaniasis in humans and animals. Effective control of sand fly populations is essential to interrupt pathogen transmission, yet conventional insecticide-spraying methods have shown limited and often unsustainable impact. As part of Integrated Vector Management (IVM) systems, attractant-based strategies offer a promising complementary approach by luring the vector for improved surveillance and control. Understanding the sensory cues that drive sand fly behavior is essential for the development of effective attract-and-kill or monitoring tools. However, the application of attractants in sand fly control remains underutilized, partially due to fragmented and inconsistent evidence across studies. To address this gap, we conducted a systematic review, according to the PRISMA guidelines, to summarize current knowledge on sand fly attractants and evaluate their potential role within IVM frameworks. Articles published up to the end of 2024, were retrieved from four databases. The search strategy was adapted to the PEO (Population, Exposure, Outcome) framework, with tailored search queries designed for each database in order to identify relevant field and laboratory studies. The 100 included studies were assessed using a customized tool and classified into five categories: "visual cues", "olfactory cues", "combined cues", "attractive toxic sugar bates (ATSB)", and a "special category". To the best of our knowledge, this is the first systematic approach to comprehensively and systematically summarize existing knowledge regarding sand fly attractants.