Pharmaceuticals and personal care products alter the holobiome and development of a medically important mosquito

Abstract

The increasing demand for fresh water has forced many countries to use reclaimed wastewater for agricultural purposes. This water contains pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) that remain biologically active following passage through wastewater treatment plants. Run-off from farms and contaminated water from treatment facilities exposes aquatic ecosystems to PPCPs. This study examined the effects of PPCPs on a lower trophic organism. Culex quinquefasciatus larvae were reared in water contaminated with environmentally relevant concentrations of common PPCPs. Acetaminophen alone and a mixture of contaminants were found to increase developmental time of larvae. Susceptibility to Bti increased in larvae exposed to antibiotics, acetaminophen, or a mixture of PPCPs. Antibiotics, hormones, and the mixture altered the mosquito bacterial microbiome. Overall, the results indicate that at environmentally relevant concentrations, PPCPs in reclaimed water can have biologically important effects on an ecologically and medically important lower trophic level insect.

Contaminants of emerging concern affect Trichoplusia ni growth and development on artificial diets and a key host plant

“…Because T. ni is a common agricultural pest found around the world, feeds on a wide variety of plants, and has a history of developing pesticide resistance, its ability to deal with toxins is likely higher than many other insects. In addition, the responses we observed to CECs could have interesting implications for IPM practices on plants such as lowering the amount of pesticides needed or increasing susceptibility to insect pathogens, as has been shown in mosquitoes (25). These potential effects may be understated because some insects cannot detect the presence of the pharmaceuticals (64).…”

“…Our recent studies of the effects of pharmaceuticals on aquatic insects show that, at concentrations found in reclaimed water, these CECs can alter development of the mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus, its susceptibility to a common larvicide, and its larval microbial communities (25,26). Watts et al (27) showed 17α-ethinylestradiol, a common birth control agent, and Bisphenol-A, a common plasticizer, can cause deformities in the midge Chironomus riparius.…”

The microbiome modulates arbovirus transmission in mosquitoes

“…While a mechanistic understanding of these tripartite interactions is desirable, the development of high throughput in vitro assays capable of assessing host–microbe–pathogen interactions will undoubtedly be useful in this regard [67,68]. Alarmingly, recent work suggests it is possible that the medicinal use of antibiotics and other products is also perturbing the microbiota within mosquitoes [69 •• ,70]. Mosquitoes that fed upon humans treated with antibiotics were shown to have an altered microbiome compared to mosquitoes imbibing a blood meal from humans not using antibiotics [69 •• ].…”

“…Mosquitoes that fed upon humans treated with antibiotics were shown to have an altered microbiome compared to mosquitoes imbibing a blood meal from humans not using antibiotics [69 •• ]. Similarly, the expulsion of antibiotics and other personal products from humans into the environment was shown in laboratory experiments to modify the larval microbiome of mosquitoes [70]. These findings suggest anthropogenic alteration of the environment by antibiotics and pharmaceutical products could manipulate the microbiota of mosquitoes, thus have wide-reaching implications for mosquito biology and pathogen transmission.…”

Variation in the microbiota across different developmental stages of Aedes albopictus is affected by ampicillin exposure

“…The composition and structure of the mosquito microbiota are highly variable and are associated with species, breeding habitat, diet, and even microenvironmental factors (such as intestinal pH, oxygen status, and residence time of digesta; Belda et al, 2011; Hu, Lukasik, Moreau, & Russell, 2014; Mikaelyan, Meuser, & Brune, 2017; Pennington, Rivas, Prager, Walton, & Trumble, 2015). Previous studies have gathered sufficient information to demonstrate that the microbiota of mosquitoes is often dominated by relatively few genera (Boissière et al, 2012; Buck et al, 2016; Muturi, Ramirez, Rooney, & Kim, 2017; Osei‐Poku, Mbogo, Palmer, & Jiggins, 2012; Wang, Gilbreath, Kukutla, Yan, & Xu, 2011; Yadav et al, 2015, 2016), which are principally acquired from their breeding habitats during immature developmental stages and from adult food sources.…”