Salivary<i>AsHPX12</i>influence pre-blood meal associated behavioral properties in the mosquito<i>Anopheles stephensi</i>

AbstractIn humans, dysregulation of the antioxidant defense system has a detrimental impact on male fertility and reproductive physiology. Establishing such a correlation in disease vectors may pave a new way to manipulate male’s reproductive physiology, but remains the least attended. Since long - term storage of healthy and viable sperm earmarks male’s reproductive competency, we tested whether the anti-oxidative system protein also influences male fertility in the mosquito An. stephensi. We showed that a testis-specific HPX12 is critical for maintaining the physiological homeostasis of male mosquito’s reproductive organs. Disruption of this antioxidant enzyme by dsRNA silencing in the male mosquito severely impairs the reproductive potential of mated blood-fed female mosquitoes,resulting in a loss of 60% eggs. Our data demonstrate that increased ROS in the HPX12 mRNA depleted mosquitoes is an ultimate cause of sperm disabilities both qualitatively as well as quantitatively.

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Molecular and Functional Characterization of Trehalase in the Mosquito Anopheles stephensi

Tevatiya

Kumari

Sharma

et al. 2020

Front. Physiol.

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Like other insects, in blood-feeding mosquitoes, trehalase (TRE; EC 3.2.1.28), an enzyme that metabolizes trehalose, may influence a wide array of functions including flight, survival, reproduction, and vectorial capacity, but its role has not been investigated in detail. Here, we characterized a 1,839-bp-long transcript, encoding a 555-aa-long trehalase-2 homolog protein from the mosquito Anopheles stephensi. With a conserved insect homology, and in silico predicted membrane-bound protein, we tested whether trehalase (As-TreH) also plays a role in mosquito physiologies. Constitutive expression during aquatic development or adult mosquito tissues, and a consistent upregulation until 42 h of starvation, which was restored to basal levels after sugar supply, together indicated that As-TreH may have a key role in stress tolerance. A multifold enrichment in the midgut (p < 0.001819) and salivary glands (p < 4.37E-05) of the Plasmodium vivax-infected mosquitoes indicated that As-TreH may favor parasite development and survival in the mosquito host. However, surprisingly, after the blood meal, a consistent upregulation until 24 h in the fat body, and 48 h in the ovary, prompted to test its possible functional correlation in the reproductive physiology of the adult female mosquitoes. A functional knockdown by dsRNA-mediated silencing confers As-TreH ability to alter reproductive potential, causing a significant loss in the egg numbers (p < 0.001), possibly by impairing energy metabolism in the developing oocytes. Conclusively, our data provide initial evidence that As-TreH regulates multiple physiologies and may serve as a suitable target for designing novel strategies for vector control.

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SalivaryAsHPX12influence pre-blood meal associated behavioral properties in the mosquitoAnopheles stephensi

Cited by 3 publications

References 39 publications

Hemocyte RNA-Seq analysis of Indian malarial vectors Anopheles stephensi and Anopheles culicifacies: From similarities to differences

Hemocyte RNA-Seq analysis of Indian malarial vectors Anopheles stephensi and Anopheles culicifacies: From similarities to differences

A testis-specific Heme Peroxidase HPX12 regulates male fertility in the mosquitoAnopheles stephensi

Molecular and Functional Characterization of Trehalase in the Mosquito Anopheles stephensi

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