Culicoides Latreille (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) taxonomy: Current challenges and future directions

Harrup, Lara E.; Bellis, Glenn; Balenghien, Thomas; Garros, Claire

doi:10.1016/j.meegid.2014.12.018

Cited by 76 publications

(82 citation statements)

References 169 publications

(213 reference statements)

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“…C. dobyi Callot & Kremer [67]. To resolve these issues it is particularly important that specimens are collected from the species type-locality in order to confirm that subsequent specimens are in fact conspecific (see Harrup et al [68] for review).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blood-feeding, susceptibility to infection with Schmallenberg virus and phylogenetics of Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) from the United Kingdom

Barber¹,

Harrup²,

Silk³

et al. 2018

Parasites Vectors

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Background: Culicoides biting midges (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) are responsible for the biological transmission of internationally important arboviruses of livestock. In 2011, a novel Orthobunyavirus was discovered in northern Europe causing congenital malformations and abortions in ruminants. From field studies, Culicoides were implicated in the transmission of this virus which was subsequently named Schmallenberg virus (SBV), but to date no assessment of susceptibility to infection of field populations under standardised laboratory conditions has been carried out. We assessed the influence of membrane type (chick skin, collagen, Parafilm M®) when offered in conjunction with an artificial blood-feeding system (Hemotek, UK) on field-collected Culicoides blood-feeding rates. Susceptibility to infection with SBV following blood-feeding on an SBV-blood suspension provided via either (i) the Hemotek system or via (ii) a saturated cotton wool pledglet was then compared. Schmallenberg virus susceptibility was defined by RT-qPCR of RNA extractions of head homogenates and related to Culicoides species and haplotype identifications based on the DNA barcode region of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase 1 (cox1) gene. Results: Culicoides blood-feeding rates were low across all membrane types tested (7.5% chick skin, 0.0% for collagen, 4.4% Parafilm M®, with 6029 female Culicoides being offered a blood meal in total). Susceptibility to infection with SBV through membrane blood-feeding (8 of 109 individuals tested) and pledglet blood-feeding (1 of 94 individuals tested) was demonstrated for the Obsoletus complex, with both C. obsoletus (Meigen) and C. scoticus Downes & Kettle susceptible to infection with SBV through oral feeding. Potential evidence of cryptic species within UK populations was found for the Obsoletus complex in phylogenetic analyses of cox1 DNA barcodes of 74 individuals assessed from a single field-site. Conclusions: Methods described in this study provide the means to blood-feed Palaearctic Culicoides for vector competence studies and colonisation attempts. Susceptibility to SBV infection was 7.3% for membrane-fed members of the subgenus Avaritia and 1.1% for pledglet-fed. Both C. obsoletus and C. scoticus were confirmed as being susceptible to infection with SBV, with potential evidence of cryptic species within UK Obsoletus complex specimens, however the implications of cryptic diversity in the Obsoletus complex on arbovirus transmission remains unknown.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blood-feeding, susceptibility to infection with Schmallenberg virus and phylogenetics of Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) from the United Kingdom

Barber¹,

Harrup²,

Silk³

et al. 2018

Parasites Vectors

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“…Many blood-feeding arthropods that serve as vectors, especially in the Diptera, have feeding behaviors that can be plastic in response to environmental change and host availability [6, 7]. For many vector species, we lack knowledge about the diversity of hosts they choose to bite [8–10]. Disentangling vector-borne pathogen transmission networks requires full characterization of the breadth of host species upon which vectors feed [11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Picky eaters are rare: DNA-based blood meal analysis of Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) species from the United States

Hopken

Ryan

Huyvaert³

et al. 2017

Parasites Vectors

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BackgroundBiting midges in the genus Culicoides (Diptera; Ceratopogonidae) have been implicated in the transmission of a number of parasites and highly pathogenic viruses. In North America, the complete transmission cycles of many of these pathogens need further elucidation. One way to increase our knowledge about the evolution and ecology of Culicoides species and the pathogens they transmit is to document the diversity of vertebrate hosts that Culicoides feed upon. Our objective was to identify the diversity of Culicoides hosts in the United States.ResultsWe sequenced two vertebrate mitochondrial genes (cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 and cytochrome b) from blood-engorged Culicoides to identify Culicoides species and their blood meals. We detected the mitochondrial DNA of 12 host species from seven different Culicoides species from three states. The majority of the identified blood meals were from the C. variipennis species complex in California. The hosts included both mammals and birds. We documented new host records for some of the Culicoides species collected. The majority of the mammalian hosts were large ungulate species but we also detected a lagomorph and a carnivore. The bird species that were detected included house finch and emu; the latter is evidence that the species in the C. variipennis species complex are not strictly mammalophilic.ConclusionsThese results demonstrate that Culicoides will feed on multiple classes of vertebrates and may be more opportunistic in regards to host choice than previously thought. This knowledge can help with identification of susceptible host species, pathogen reservoirs, and new vector species which, in turn, will improve disease outbreak risk assessments.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13071-017-2099-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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“…However, this task is laborious due, above all, to the minute size of individuals and the huge number of species included in this genus. Thus, the present results provide support for the feasibility of the COI marker as a barcoding region for use in the identification of C. imicola (Harrup et al ., ). Along with other genetic markers, study of the genetic diversity of the COI region of C. imicola has been used to examine the current distribution and colonization routes of this species in Europe (Jacquet et al ., , ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

First molecular identification of the vertebrate hosts ofCulicoides imicolainEurope and a review of its blood‐feeding patterns worldwide: implications for the transmission of bluetongue disease andAfrican horse sickness

Puente

Navarro

Ferraguti

et al. 2017

Medical Vet Entomology

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Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) are vectors of pathogens that affect wildlife, livestock and, occasionally, humans. Culicoides imicola (Kieffer, 1913) is considered to be the main vector of the pathogens that cause bluetongue disease (BT) and African horse sickness (AHS) in southern Europe. The study of blood-feeding patterns in Culicoides is an essential step towards understanding the epidemiology of these pathogens. Molecular tools that increase the accuracy and sensitivity of traditional methods have been developed to identify the hosts of potential insect vectors. However, to the present group's knowledge, molecular studies that identify the hosts of C. imicola in Europe are lacking. The present study genetically characterizes the barcoding region of C. imicola trapped on farms in southern Spain and identifies its vertebrate hosts in the area. The report also reviews available information on the blood-feeding patterns of C. imicola worldwide. Culicoides imicola from Spain feed on blood of six mammals that include species known to be hosts of the BT and AHS viruses. This study provides evidence of the importance of livestock as sources of bloodmeals for C. imicola and the relevance of this species in the transmission of BT and AHS viruses in Europe.

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Culicoides Latreille (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) taxonomy: Current challenges and future directions

Cited by 76 publications

References 169 publications

Blood-feeding, susceptibility to infection with Schmallenberg virus and phylogenetics of Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) from the United Kingdom

Blood-feeding, susceptibility to infection with Schmallenberg virus and phylogenetics of Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) from the United Kingdom

Picky eaters are rare: DNA-based blood meal analysis of Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) species from the United States

First molecular identification of the vertebrate hosts ofCulicoides imicolainEurope and a review of its blood‐feeding patterns worldwide: implications for the transmission of bluetongue disease andAfrican horse sickness

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