Measuring the host-seeking ability of <i>Aedes aegypti</i> destined for field release

Lau, Meng-Jia; Endersby‐Harshman, Nancy M.; Axford, Jason K.; Ritchie, Scott A.; Hoffmann, Ary A.; Ross, Perran A

doi:10.1101/695528

Cited by 6 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 83 publications

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“…Densities of Wolbachia in Ae. albopictus tended to decrease with increasing temperature, and Wolbachia endosymbionts could be removed from the host by exposure to heat or antibiotics (Hermans et al, 2001;Lau et al, 2020). In China, Ae.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wolbachia infection in field-collected Aedes aegypti in Yunnan Province, southwestern China

Zhang

Gao²,

Ma³

et al. 2022

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.

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BackgroundWolbachia is gram-negative and common intracellular bacteria, which is maternally inherited endosymbionts and could expand their propagation in host populations by means of various manipulations. Recent reports reveal the natural infection of Wolbachia in Aedes Aegypti in Malaysia, India, Philippines, Thailand and the United States. At present, none of Wolbachia natural infection in Ae. aegypti has been reported in China.MethodsA total of 480 Ae. aegypti adult mosquitoes were collected from October and November 2018 based on the results of previous investigations and the distribution of Ae. aegypti in Yunnan. Each individual sample was processed and screened for the presence of Wolbachia by PCR with wsp primers. Phylogenetic trees for the wsp gene was constructed using the neighbour-joining method with 1,000 bootstrap replicates, and the p-distance distribution model of molecular evolution was applied.Results24 individual adult mosquito samples and 10 sample sites were positive for Wolbachia infection. The Wolbachia infection rate (IR) of each population ranged from 0 - 41.7%. The infection rate of group A alone was 0%-10%, the infection rate of group B alone was 0%-7.7%, and the infection rate of co-infection with A and B was 0-33.3%.ConclusionsWolbachia infection in wild Ae. aegypti in China is the first report based on PCR amplification of the Wolbachia wsp gene. The Wolbachia infection is 5%, and the wAlbA and wAlbB strains were found to be prevalent in the natural population of Ae. aegypti in Yunnan Province.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wolbachia infection in field-collected Aedes aegypti in Yunnan Province, southwestern China

Zhang

Gao²,

Ma³

et al. 2022

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.

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“…For instance, the Field Human B population was paired with the Field Membrane B population. Since the human- and membrane-selected populations could not be distinguished phenotypically, the populations were lightly marked with fluorescent powder (DayGlo powder, Barnes Products, Moorebank, Australia) as described in Lau et al [45]. This involved aspirating females into a 70 mL cup containing 0.3 mg of green or orange powder which was then gently shaken to mark the mosquitoes.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The semi-field experiments followed methods described in Lau et al [45] and were conducted in an enclosure designed to simulate a typical yard and Queenslander-style house understory [46]. Experiments in the semi-field cage were performed after 8 generations of selection.…”

Section: Host-seekingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Does membrane feeding compromise the quality of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes?

2019

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Modified Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are being mass-reared for release in disease control programs around the world. Releases involving female mosquitoes rely on them being able to seek and feed on human hosts. To facilitate the mass-production of mosquitoes for releases, females are often provided blood through artificial membrane feeders. When reared across generations there is a risk that mosquitoes will adapt to feeding on membranes and lose their ability to feed on human hosts. To test adaptation to membrane feeding, we selected replicate populations of Ae. aegypti for feeding on either human arms or membrane feeders for at least 8 generations. Membrane-selected populations suffered fitness costs, likely due to inbreeding depression arising from bottlenecks. Membrane-selected females had higher feeding rates on membranes than human-selected ones, suggesting adaptation to membrane feeding, but they maintained their attraction to host cues and feeding ability on humans despite a lack of selection for these traits. Host-seeking ability in small laboratory cages did not differ between populations selected on the two blood sources, but membrane-selected females were compromised in a semi-field enclosure where host-seeking was tested over a longer distance. Our findings suggest that Ae. aegypti may adapt to feeding on blood provided artificially, but this will not substantially compromise field performance or affect experimental assessments of mosquito fitness. However, large population sizes (thousands of individuals) during mass rearing with membrane feeders should be maintained to avoid bottlenecks which lead to inbreeding depression.

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“…The host-seeking behavior of ARwP and S ANG females irradiated at 45 Gy was studied under large enclosure conditions in comparison with untreated individuals taking a cue from previous studies [35]. The trials were conducted in two large cellular polycarbonate experimental units (LEU, 8.5 × 5 × 5 m L : W : H) with two large lateral openings (L = 8 m; H = 1 m) protected by mosquito net to promote ventilation and ensure natural climatic conditions.…”

Section: Host-seeking Ability and Biting Rate In Irradiated Ae Albopmentioning

confidence: 99%

Increased biting rate and decreasedWolbachiadensity in irradiatedAedesmosquitoes

Moretti

López-Knowles

Fabbri

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Releasing considerable numbers of radiation-sterilized males is a promising strategy to suppress mosquito vectors. However, under large-scale settings, small percentages of biting females can also be released in the field. Currently, the effects of the irradiation on host-seeking and host-biting behaviors have not been exhaustively investigated. Information is also lacking regarding the effects of a sterilizing treatment on the endosymbiotic bacterium Wolbachia , that is known to attenuate the vector competence of infected mosquito species. To ascertain the risks associated with the release of irradiated females, the pupae of two Aedes albopictus strains, differing by their natural or artificial Wolbachia infection type, were X-ray-treated using various doses to monitor key fitness parameters and biting behavior over two weeks. The effect of the radiation on Wolbachia was investigated by qPCR and FISH analysis. Radiation doses of 35 and 45 Gy completely inhibited progeny production but did not significantly affect Ae. albopictus female survival and flight ability, and caused a tripling of the number of bites per female per week compared to untreated controls. These results were also confirmed in Ae. aegypti after treatment at 5 0 Gy. A partial Ae. albopictus female sterility was achieved at 28 Gy but the number of weekly bites more than doubled compared to the controls. The Wolbachia density showed a significant downward trend in 45-Gy-irradiated females and decreased with adult aging and in younger treated pupae. This trend was confirmed in ovaries but not in extraovaric tissues. FISH analysis evidenced a strongly reduced Wolbachia -specific fluorescence in the ovaries of 13±1-day-old females. These findings suggested that irradiation could markedly increase the vectorial capacity of female mosquitoes, raising concerns about open field programs involving the release of substantial numbers of irradiated mosquitoes in the absence of perfect sexing methods.

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Measuring the host-seeking ability of Aedes aegypti destined for field release

Cited by 6 publications

References 83 publications

Wolbachia infection in field-collected Aedes aegypti in Yunnan Province, southwestern China

Wolbachia infection in field-collected Aedes aegypti in Yunnan Province, southwestern China

Does membrane feeding compromise the quality of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes?

Increased biting rate and decreasedWolbachiadensity in irradiatedAedesmosquitoes

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