Assessment of antibiotic treatment on Anopheles darlingi survival and susceptibility to Plasmodium vivax

Abstract

Antibiotic treatment has been used to enhance anopheline susceptibility to Plasmodium infection, because bacterial microbiota play a fundamental role in modulating the vector competence of mosquitoes that transmit Plasmodium parasites. However, few studies have examined the impact of antibiotic treatments on Plasmodium vivax sporogonic development in neotropical anopheline mosquitoes. Herein, we assessed the impact of antibiotic treatment on P. vivax development and survival in Anopheles darlingi, the main vector of malaria in the Amazon region. Female mosquitoes were treated continuously with antibiotics to impact the gut bacterial load and then tested for prevalence, infection intensity, and survival in comparison with untreated mosquitoes. Antibiotic-fed mosquitoes had not dramatic impact on P. vivax development previously observed in P. falciparum. However, antibiotic treatment increases mosquito survival, which is known to increase vectorial capacity. These findings raise questions about the effect of antibiotics on P. vivax development and survival in An. darlingi.

Survival effects of antibiotic exposure during the larval and adult stages in the West Nile virus vector Culex pipiens

“…We predict that exposing Cx. pipiens mosquitoes to antibiotics solely during the adult stage will enhance survival rates of mosquitoes, as suggested by prior research (Gendrin et al, 2015;Martínez-de la Puente et al, 2021;Santos et al, 2022). However, we hypothesize that exposure to antibiotics during both larval and adult stages will negatively affect adult survival rates, as this treatment may lead to a more profound alteration of the microbiome, potentially removing crucial bacterial taxa.…”

“…The conclusions of our study are limited by the fact that we do not know the identity and richness of microorganisms affected by the treatment. However, the antibiotics used were previously employed to disrupt the microbiota of mosquitoes, showing significant effects on survival and pathogen transmission (Dong et al, 2009;Martínez-de la Puente et al, 2021;Santos et al, 2022). In addition, using field-collected larvae, we observed significant effects resulting from exposure to antibiotics at concentrations commonly found in environmental freshwater (Mutuku et al, 2022).…”

“…, 2021; Santos et al. , 2022). However, we hypothesize that exposure to antibiotics during both larval and adult stages will negatively affect adult survival rates, as this treatment may lead to a more profound alteration of the microbiome, potentially removing crucial bacterial taxa.…”

“…In addition, antibiotic treatments may also affect mosquito fecundity (Ha et al, 2021), blood digestion and egg production (Gaio et al, 2011), and the larval development period (Chouaia et al, 2012). Despite the importance of antibiotics in the epidemiology of mosquito-borne pathogens, studies so far have mainly focused on female mosquitoes belonging to the genera Anopheles (Dos Santos et al, 2022) and Aedes (Gómez-Govea et al, 2022), with very limited information available for other major mosquito vector groups. This is especially the case of the carryover effects of antibiotic exposure during the larval and adult stages on adult survival that, to our knowledge, have not been investigated in detail.…”

“…Despite the importance of antibiotics in the epidemiology of mosquito‐borne pathogens, studies so far have mainly focused on female mosquitoes belonging to the genera Anopheles (Dos Santos et al. , 2022) and Aedes (Gómez‐Govea et al. , 2022), with very limited information available for other major mosquito vector groups.…”