BiteOscope, an open platform to study mosquito biting behavior

Hol, Felix J H; Lambrechts, Louis; Prakash, Manu

doi:10.7554/elife.56829

Cited by 35 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 82 publications

(111 reference statements)

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“…This longitudinal method is thorough enough to detect these differences and thus allows for further hypothesis testing regarding the mechanisms behind this phenomenon and other heterogeneity observed. Other methods have also investigated vector competence in longitudinal ways, highlighting the importance of this research [ 41 , 42 ]. Of course, with an artificial system, there is a lack of biological cues associated with feeding [ 43 , 44 , 45 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Method for Repeated, Longitudinal Sampling of Individual Aedes aegypti for Transmission Potential of Arboviruses

Mayton

Hernandez

Vitek

et al. 2021

Insects

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Mosquito-borne viruses are the cause of significant morbidity and mortality worldwide, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Assessing risk for viral transmission often involves characterization of the vector competence of vector–virus pairings. The most common determination of vector competence uses discreet, terminal time points, which cannot be used to investigate variation in transmission aspects, such as biting behavior, over time. Here, we present a novel method to longitudinally measure individual biting behavior and Zika virus (ZIKV) transmission. Individual mosquitoes were exposed to ZIKV, and from 9 to 24 days post-exposure, individuals were each offered a 180 μL bloodmeal every other day. Biting behavior was observed and characterized as either active probing, feeding, or no bite. The bloodmeal was then collected, spun down, serum collected, and tested for ZIKV RNA via qRT-PCR to determine individuals’ vector competence over time. This included whether transmission to the bloodmeal was successful and the titer of expectorated virus. Additionally, serum was inoculated onto Vero cells in order to determine infectiousness of positive recovered sera. Results demonstrate heterogeneity in not only biting patterns but expectorated viral titers among individual mosquitoes over time. These findings demonstrate that the act of transmission is a complex process governed by mosquito behavior and mosquito–virus interaction, and herein we offer a method to investigate this phenomenon.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Method for Repeated, Longitudinal Sampling of Individual Aedes aegypti for Transmission Potential of Arboviruses

Mayton

Hernandez

Vitek

et al. 2021

Insects

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“…If ligands are added to the outer surface of the parafilm instead, they remain separated from the meal and may be contacted by the labium and legs36. Finally, the detailed kinetics of blood-feeding behavior are not well understood and the method presented here could be modified to combine high-resolution tracking with machine learning tools to extract behavioral readouts of locomotion, posture, and feeding dynamics 38 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feeding and Quantifying Animal-Derived Blood and Artificial Meals in <em>Aedes aegypti</em> Mosquitoes

Jové

Venkataraman

Gabel³

et al. 2020

JoVE

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Females of certain mosquito species can spread diseases while biting vertebrate hosts to obtain protein-rich blood meals required for egg development. In the laboratory, researchers can deliver animal-derived and artificial blood meals to mosquitoes via membrane feeders, which allow for manipulation of meal composition. Here, we present methods for feeding blood and artificial blood meals to Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and quantifying the volume consumed by individual females. Targeted feeding and quantification of artificial/blood meals have broad uses, including testing the effects of meal components on mosquito behavior and physiology, delivering pharmacological compounds without injection, and infecting mosquitoes with specific pathogens. Adding fluorescein dye to the meal prior to feeding allows for subsequent meal size quantification. The meal volume consumed by mosquitoes can be measured either by weight, if the females are to be used later for behavioral experiments, or by homogenizing individual females in 96-well plates and measuring fluorescence levels using a plate reader as an endpoint assay. Meal size quantification can be used to determine whether changing the meal components alters the meal volume ingested or if meal consumption differs between mosquito strains. Precise meal size quantification is also critical for downstream assays, such as those measuring effects on host attraction or fecundity. The methods presented here can be further adapted to track meal digestion over the course of days or to include multiple distinguishable markers added to different meals (like nectar and blood) to quantify the consumption of each meal by a single mosquito. These methods allow researchers to singlehandedly perform high-throughput measurements to compare the meal volume consumed by hundreds of individual mosquitoes. These tools will therefore be broadly useful to the community of mosquito researchers for answering diverse biological questions.

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“…aegypti and Ae. albopictus differ in their human biting behaviors [22] as well as their disease transmission abilities [3], factors that in uence vector abundance can alter disease transmission rates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial-Temporal Population Dynamics of Male and Female Aedes Albopictus at a Local Scale in Medellín, Colombia

Camargo

Alfonso-Parra

Díaz

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Background: Diseases transmitted by invasive Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes are major public health issues in the tropics and subtropics. Understanding the ecology of mosquito vectors is essential for the development of effective disease mitigation programs and will allow for accurate predictions of vector occurrence and abundance. Studies that examine mosquito population dynamics are typically focused on female presence or total adult captures without discriminating the temporal and spatial distribution of both sexes. Methods: We collected immature and adult mosquitoes twice monthly during a two-year period (2018 – 2019) in the Medellín Botanical Garden (Medellín, Colombia) and assessed: 1) the relationship between climatic variables/vegetation coverage and adult captures, 2) the temporal and spatial distribution of Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus during the study period, 3) the temporal and spatial distribution of Ae. albopictus males and females, and 4) the correlation of male and female size in relation to climatic variables and vegetation coverage. Results: We show that Ae. albopictus was the predominant species in the park during the study period. Adult captures were positively correlated with precipitation and relative humidity, and inversely correlated with temperature and wind speed. Spatial analysis showed that Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus were distributed at different locations within the surveilled area. Moreover, we observed a spatial misalignment of Ae. albopictus males and females—the majority of males were located in the high vegetation coverage sites and the females in the medium vegetation coverage sites. Conclusions: Our work elucidates the differential dynamics of Ae. albopictus males and females, which is pivotal to develop accurate surveillance and the successful establishment of vector control programs based on the disruption of insect reproduction.

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BiteOscope, an open platform to study mosquito biting behavior

Cited by 35 publications

References 82 publications

A Method for Repeated, Longitudinal Sampling of Individual Aedes aegypti for Transmission Potential of Arboviruses

A Method for Repeated, Longitudinal Sampling of Individual Aedes aegypti for Transmission Potential of Arboviruses

Feeding and Quantifying Animal-Derived Blood and Artificial Meals in <em>Aedes aegypti</em> Mosquitoes

Spatial-Temporal Population Dynamics of Male and Female Aedes Albopictus at a Local Scale in Medellín, Colombia

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