Reduced levels of genetic variation in Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) from Manaus, Amazonas State, Brazil, based on analysis of the mitochondrial DNA ND5 gene

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Aedes albopictus, a mosquito originally from Southeast Asia, is considered to be one of the main vectors of dengue fever, yellow fever and other arboviruses. We examined the genetic variability and population structure of 68 individuals of Ae. albopictus collected from five neighborhoods of the city of Manaus, based on the mitochondrial gene coding for NADH dehydrogenase subunit 5 (ND5). Two haplotypes were found, separated by a single mutational event (T ↔ C), with extremely low levels of genetic variability (h = 0.187 ± 0.059; π = 0.00044 ± 0.00014). Based on AMOVA, we concluded that most of the variation (99.08%) occurred within populations, though the levels of variation were not significant. Neutrality tests (Tajima's D and Fu's Fs) were non-significant, indicating that these populations are in genetic equilibrium. The most frequent haplotype (H1) is restricted to Brazilian populations of Ae. albopictus, while the rarer haplotype (H2) is shared with populations from the United States and Asia. We suggest that the reduced variability and low genetic structure identified in our study is a consequence of the recent introduction of this species in Manaus, possibly through a founder effect, followed by expansion throughout the city neighborhoods. Genetic similarity would therefore be due to insufficient time to have accumulated genetic differences between the populations of Ae. albopictus and not to extensive gene flow among them.

Temporal Patterns of Abundance of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) and Mitochondrial DNA Analysis of Ae. albopictus in the Central African Republic

“…albopictus populations across most of its geographical range. The degree of polymorphism found in ND5 and COI sequences in this study was low (three haplotypes for ND5 and four for COI ), consistent with previous studies of populations sampled in newly invaded areas [32], [33], [34], [56], [57], in which the number of haplotypes per country never exceeded five, regardless of the mtDNA marker used ( ND5 , COI or Cytb ). In CAR, the low overall mtDNA diversity is consistent with recent introduction of a few founder females, as suggested by Diallo et al [12], or may be related to ubiquitous Wolbachia infection in populations of this species, as suggested by Armbruster et al [58].…”

Genetic variation in East-Adriatic populations of the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae), inferred from NADH5 and COI sequence variability

“…The second largest group, containing haplotype H1, contained only the Brazilian populations. Our phylogenetic analysis thus confirmed earlier studies indicating a separate introduction of this species into Brazil (Birungi & Munsterman, 2002, Usmani-Brown et al, 2009, Maia et al, 2009.…”

“…The two most frequent haplotypes were H1 and H3, which differ in a single C-T substitution. The most frequent ND5 haplotype, H3, has been identified in the species' native range; continental United States, Hawaii, Madagascar, Cameroon, and Italy (Birungi & Munsterman 2002;Usmani-Brown et al, 2009;Maia et al, 2009). The populations of A. albopictus from Croatia and Montenegro analyzed in this study also belong to this haplotype.…”

Glacial History of a Modern Invader: Phylogeography and Species Distribution Modelling of the Asian Tiger Mosquito Aedes albopictus

“…Mitochondrial DNA has been widely used to infer the geographic origin of invasive populations of Ae. albopictus [49], [75], [77], [79]. The comparison between native and new colonizing populations is outside the scope of our study.…”