Vertebrate Hosts ofAedes aegyptiandAedes mediovittatus(Diptera: Culicidae) in Rural Puerto Rico

Abstract

The distribution of Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti (L.), the main vector of dengue viruses (DENV) worldwide, overlaps with Aedes (Gymnometopa) mediovittatus (Coquillett), the Caribbean treehole mosquito, in urban, suburban, and rural areas. Ae. mediovittatus is a competent vector of DENV with high rates of vertical DENV transmission in the laboratory. This study determined whether Ae. mediovittatus feeds on humans and compared its feeding patterns with co-occurring Ae. aegypti in two rural communities of Puerto Rico. Adult mosquitoes were captured for three consecutive days every week from July 2009 to May 2010 using BG-Sentinel traps with skin lures that were placed in the front yard of houses in both communities. Three methods were used to identify the 756 bloodmeals obtained in this study: a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for humans and dogs targeting cytochrome b; a PCR targeting the 16S rRNA; and a nested PCR targeting cytochrome b. Ae. mediovittatus fed mostly on humans (45–52%) and dogs (28–32%) but also on cats, cows, horses, rats, pigs, goats, sheep, and chickens. Ae. aegypti fed mostly on humans (76–79%) and dogs (18–21%) but also on cats, horses, and chickens. Our results indicate that Ae. mediovittatus may have a relatively high rate of vector–human contact, which might facilitate virus transmission or harborage in rural areas of Puerto Rico.

Genetic control ofAedesmosquitoes

“…aegypti has a strong preference for anthropophagy, but this is far from absolute and could presumably be increased by such selection. [116][117][118][119] These issues illustrate the difficulty of predicting the consequences of releasing a self-sustaining genetic system relating to future evolutionary responses. The use of a 'black box' system such as Wolbachia has advantages and disadvantages relative to genetic engineering using well-characterised components.…”

Probe-based multiplex qPCR identifies blood-meal hosts in Anopheles mosquitoes from Papua New Guinea

“…Thus, a primary outcome of this study is the sensitivity of the probe-based, qPCR method to detect blood from different mammal species in the same blood meal. This finding indicates that a significant proportion of unidentified blood-meal sources in studies that used the conventional, multiplex PCR [24,[36][37][38][39][40][41] may, among other factors, be due to the sensitivity of this method. Furthermore, the proportion of mixed blood meals may be underestimated and single blood meals overestimated in some published studies.…”

Serological Evidence of Infection with Endemic Human Pathogens Among Free-Ranging Old World Monkeys in Puerto Rico

“…Conditions around southwestern PR seem favorable for an enzootic cycle of human DENV transmission due to: 1) patas monkeys, a known host of sylvatic DENV in West Africa and 2) the presence of competent mosquito vectors of DENV in PR. [21][22][23][24] In addition to the presence of neutralizing antibodies to DENV, the monkey serum also had neutralizing antibodies against WNV. In 2007, WNV was first isolated in PR following the seroconversion of sentinel chickens in municipality of Ceiba.…”