Temperature-Mediated Effects on Mayaro Virus Vector Competency of Florida Aedes aegypti Mosquito Vectors

Abstract

Mayaro virus (MAYV) is an emerging mosquito-borne arbovirus and public health concern. We evaluated the influence of temperature on Aedes aegypti responses to MAYV oral infection and transmission at two constant temperatures (20 °C and 30 °C). Infection of mosquito tissues (bodies and legs) and salivary secretions with MAYV was determined at 3, 9, 15, 21, and 27 days post ingestion. At both temperatures, we observed a trend of increase in progression of MAYV infection and replication kinetics over time, followed by a decline during later periods. Peaks of MAYV infection, titer, and dissemination from the midgut were detected at 15 and 21 days post ingestion at 30 °C and 20 °C, respectively. Mosquitoes were able to transmit MAYV as early as day 3 at 30 °C, but MAYV was not detectable in salivary secretions until day 15 at 20 °C. Low rates of MAYV in salivary secretions collected from infected mosquitoes provided evidence supporting the notion that a substantial salivary gland barrier(s) in Florida Ae. aegypti can limit the risk of MAYV transmission. Our results provide insights into the effects of temperature and time on the progression of infection and replication of MAYV in Ae. aegypti vectors.

Assessment of Mayaro virus vector competence of the mosquito Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus, 1762) populations in Argentine using dose–response assays

“…Previous studies have shown that Ae. aegypti is a competent vector of MAYV (Alomar & Alto, 2022; Alto et al, 2020; Brustolin et al, 2018; Diop et al, 2019; Krokovsky et al, 2023; Pereira et al, 2020; Sucupira et al, 2020; Long et al, 2011; Wiggins et al, 2018). However, conventional vector competence studies involve limited viral doses, and researchers often employ higher viral doses to enhance the likelihood of detecting infected mosquitoes.…”

Exposure to cooler temperatures during pupal development increases Aedes aegypti vector competence and the R0 for Zika virus

“…Exposure to cooler temperatures during the development of mosquitoes has been suggested to reduce barriers to midgut infection and escape, thereby enhancing vector competence for arbovirus pathogens (18, 32). However, many laboratory-based studies exploring temperature-dependent effects on vector competence, as well as mechanistic models incorporating environmental conditions, often overlook the natural thermal environments of disease vectors (4, 14, 28, 33). Instead, a significant portion of research on mosquito vector competence is conducted under constant temperatures, which do not mirror the diurnal temperature fluctuations experienced by mosquitoes in their natural habitats (21, 25).…”

Brazilian Populations of Aedes aegypti Resistant to Pyriproxyfen Exhibit Lower Susceptibility to Infection with Zika Virus

“…Cell monolayers were then infected with stock ZIKV at a 0.01 multiplicity of infection and incubated for six days at 37 °C in media (M199) (HyClone, Medium 199, GE Healthcare, Logan, UT, USA) supplemented with 10% heat-inactivated fetal bovine serum (Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waltham, MA, USA), antibiotics (penicillin–streptomycin), and Mycostatin. After this incubation period, infectious cell culture supernatant was harvested and added to defibrinated bovine blood (Hemostat Laboratories, Dixon, CA, USA) with adenosine-5’-triphosphate disodium salt trihydrate (ATP, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waltham, MA, USA) to obtain infectious bloodmeal [ 34 , 35 ].…”