Document Detail


A Wolbachia symbiont in Aedes aegypti disrupts mosquito egg development to a greater extent when mosquitoes feed on nonhuman versus human blood.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  21337952     Owner:  NLM     Status:  In-Process    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
A vertebrate bloodmeal is required by female mosquitoes of most species to obtain nutrients for egg maturation. The yellowfever mosquito, Aedes aegypti (L.), feeds predominantly on humans, despite having the capacity to use blood from other hosts for this process. Here, we report that female Ae. aegypti infected with a virulent strain of the intracellular bacterium Wolbachia pipientis (wMelPop) from Drosophila melanogaster (Meigen) have a reduced ability to use blood for egg development. Blood feeding by wMelPop-infected females on mouse, guinea pig, or chicken hosts resulted in a near complete abolishment of reproductive output associated with both a decline in the numbers of eggs oviposited as well as the hatching rate of successfully laid eggs. In contrast, the reproductive output of wMelPop-infected females fed human blood was only mildly affected in comparison to individuals fed animal blood sources. Blood-feeding assays over two reproductive cycles definitively illustrated a nutritional interaction between host blood source and egg development in wMelPop-infected Ae. aegypti. Removal of Wolbachia from mosquitoes using antibiotic treatment rescued egg development on all blood sources. Further investigation of this phenotype may provide new insights into the nutritional basis of mosquito anthropophily.
Authors:
Conor J McMeniman; Grant L Hughes; Scott L O'Neill
Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Journal of medical entomology     Volume:  48     ISSN:  0022-2585     ISO Abbreviation:  J. Med. Entomol.     Publication Date:  2011 Jan 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2011-02-21     Completed Date:  -     Revised Date:  -    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  0375400     Medline TA:  J Med Entomol     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  76-84     Citation Subset:  IM    
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, QLD 4072, Australia.
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