Designing effective Wolbachia release programs for mosquito and arbovirus control

Ross, Perran A

doi:10.1016/j.actatropica.2021.106045

Cited by 22 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 169 publications

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“…32 Wolbachia experts recognize that strain selection for a given intervention must account for local environmental realities. 15 Recent studies have focused on deployment in extreme environments 33 and the development of strains with increased phenotypic stability under heat stress. 34 Even so, it is understood that "ideal Wolbachia strains for population replacement do not exist, requiring a trade-off between Wolbachia infection stability, host fitness costs, and pathogen blocking."…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…29 Together with additional research into the connection between Wolbachia density and the mechanisms of CI, 31 further scientific investigation of the temperature seeking behavior caused by this symbiont is needed. 15 Importantly, dengue virus has also been shown to increase the thermal sensitivity of Ae. aegypti and coinfection with Wolbachia does not appear to furnish protection from dengue-induced thermotolerance effects.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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wMelreplacement of dengue-competent mosquitoes is robust to near-term climate change

Vásquez

Kueppers

Rašić

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Rising temperatures and increasing temperature variability are impacting the range and prevalence of mosquito-borne disease. A promising biocontrol technology replaces wild mosquitoes with those carrying the virus-blocking Wolbachia bacterium. Laboratory and field observations show that the most widely used strain, wMel, is adversely affected by heat stress. Here, we examine whether and how climate warming may impact wMel-based replacement. We integrate empirical data on the temperature sensitivity of wMel bacteria into a mechanistic model of population dynamics for the dengue vector Aedes aegypti and use CMIP5 climate projections and historical temperature records from Cairns, Australia to simulate vector control interventions. We show that higher mean temperatures are predicted to lower wMel infection frequency and that extended heatwaves have the potential to reverse the public health benefits of this intervention. Sensitivity analysis probing the thermal limits of wMel replacement reveal that, under existing projections, operational adaptations would be required for heatwaves lasting longer than two weeks. We conclude that this technology is expected to be robust to both the increased mean temperatures and heatwaves associated with near-term climate change in temperate regions. However, more rapid warming or tropical and inland regions that presently feature hotter baselines may challenge these tested limits, requiring further research.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

wMelreplacement of dengue-competent mosquitoes is robust to near-term climate change

Vásquez

Kueppers

Rašić

et al. 2022

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This could have impacts on population dynamics; w Mel is expected to reduce the Ae. aegypti population size relative to competing container species due to its fitness costs [27], thus indirectly reducing virus transmission, but evolution could mitigate this benefit. Data from long-term post-release monitoring of w Mel in Yogyakarta, Indonesia suggest minor or absent fitness costs of w Mel infection under these conditions, as the ratio of Ae.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Local adaptation ofAedes aegyptimosquitoes toWolbachia-induced fitness costs

Ross

Hoffmann

2022

Preprint

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Aedes aegypti mosquito eggs can remain quiescent for many months before hatching, allowing populations to persist through unfavorable conditions. Aedes aegypti infected with the Wolbachia strain wMel have been released in tropical and subtropical regions for dengue control. wMel reduces the viability of quiescent eggs, but this physiological cost might be expected to evolve in natural mosquito populations that frequently experience stressful conditions. We therefore compared the costs of wMel infection for quiescent egg viability in field-derived and laboratory populations. Quiescent egg viability was highly variable in wMel-infected populations, with greater costs of wMel in field-derived populations. In contrast, there was little variation between matched field-derived and long-term laboratory populations lacking wMel, suggesting that laboratory adaptation does not influence this trait and that differences are due to wMel infection. Comparisons of populations collected a year apart show a decline in costs under laboratory rearing conditions involving a rapid turnover of mosquito generations; this pattern was consistent across populations despite their origin, suggesting adaptation of mosquitoes to the wMel infection under laboratory conditions. Reciprocal crossing experiments confirm that differences in quiescent egg viability were mainly due to the genetic background and not Wolbachia alone. wMel-infected mosquitoes hatching from long-term quiescent eggs showed partial loss of cytoplasmic incompatibility and female infertility, highlighting additional costs of long-term quiescence. Our study provides the first evidence for a shift in Wolbachia phenotypic effects following deliberate field release and establishment and it highlights interactions between Wolbachia infections and local adaptation. The unexpected changes in fitness costs observed here suggest potential tradeoffs with undescribed fitness benefits of the wMel infection.

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“…In insect control strategies, Wolbachia inhibit the transmission of arboviruses such as dengue, Zika, and chikungunya viruses, among others ( Fraser et al., 2017 ; Hedges et al., 2008 ; Jeffries and Walker, 2016 ; Kean et al., 2015 ; Moreira et al., 2009 ; Pais et al., 2018 ). Because traditional pest control methods use chemical and environmental control tactics with potential off-target effects on beneficial insects and destruction of breeding habitats ( Huang et al., 2017 ; Kay et al., 2000 ; Subramaniam et al., 2015 ), Wolbachia offer promise as a safer and more sustainable control method in a variety of countries worldwide ( Beebe et al., 2021 ; Jeffries and Walker, 2016 ; Kean et al., 2015 ; Ross, 2021 ; Ross et al., 2020 ), either for population suppression ( Beebe et al., 2021 ; Bourtzis et al., 2014 ; Crawford et al., 2020 ; Laven, 1967 ; Zhang et al., 2015 ; Zheng et al., 2019 ) or population replacement ( Hoffmann et al., 2011 ; Nazni et al., 2019 ; O’Neill et al., 2018 ; Utarini et al., 2021 ; Yen and Failloux, 2020 ). Wolbachia -mediated population suppression occurs when CI-causing male mosquitoes are released and mate with uninfected females, thereby resulting in embryonic lethality and a population size reduction.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transgenic cytoplasmic incompatibility persists across age and temperature variation in Drosophila melanogaster

et al. 2022

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Designing effective Wolbachia release programs for mosquito and arbovirus control

Cited by 22 publications

References 169 publications

wMelreplacement of dengue-competent mosquitoes is robust to near-term climate change

wMelreplacement of dengue-competent mosquitoes is robust to near-term climate change

Local adaptation ofAedes aegyptimosquitoes toWolbachia-induced fitness costs

Transgenic cytoplasmic incompatibility persists across age and temperature variation in Drosophila melanogaster

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