Peri-/intradomicillary resting and host-seeking behavior of Anopheles pseudopunctipennis was studied in an experimental house (surrounded by a curtain-net) that had not been sprayed with insecticide. Peak mosquito densities were recorded resting on vegetation 1 h earlier (1900-2000 h) than on the curtain-net, suggesting that a proportion of females prefer resting on adjacent vegetation prior to...

The expression of some insect P450 genes can be induced by both exogenous and endogenous compounds and there is evidence to suggest that multiple constitutively overexpressed P450 genes are co-responsible for the development of resistance to permethrin in resistant mosquitoes. This study characterized the permethrin induction profiles of P450 genes known to be constitutively overexpressed in re...

BACKGROUND Detection of filarial DNA in mosquitoes by PCR cannot differentiate infective mosquitoes from infected mosquitoes. In order to evaluate transmission risk an assay is needed that can specifically detect infective L3 stage parasites. We now report the development of an assay that specifically detects the infective stage of Wuchereria bancrofti in mosquitoes. The assay detects an L3-act...

Mosquitoes are one of the most important vectors of human disease. The ability of mosquitoes to transmit disease is dependent on the age structure of the population, as mosquitoes must survive long enough for the parasites to complete their development and infect another human. Age could have additional effects due to mortality rates and vector competence changing as mosquitoes senesce, but the...

The percentage of emergent mosquitoes (Culex spp.) collected, temporal dynamics of collection by pyramidal emergence traps, and the effect of a chemical deterrent (pest control strips) for terrestrial scavengers, which remove emergent mosquitoes from collection jars, on the number of emergent mosquitoes collected were studied in ponds in southern California. On average, 75.5% of emergent mosqui...

Wolbachia as an endosymbiont is widespread in insects and other arthropods and is best known for reproductive manipulations of the host. Recently, it has been shown that wMelpop and wMel strains of Wolbachia inhibit the replication of several RNA viruses, including dengue virus, and other vector-borne pathogens (e.g., Plasmodium and filarial nematodes) in mosquitoes, providing an alternative ap...

Mosquitoes develop long-lasting viral infections without substantial deleterious effects, despite high viral loads. This makes mosquitoes efficient vectors for emerging viral diseases with enormous burden on public health. How mosquitoes resist and/or tolerate these viruses is poorly understood. Here we show that two species of Aedes mosquitoes infected with two arboviruses from distinct famili...

Several groups of Rift Valley fever (RVF) virus-exposed and unexposed Culex pipiens were allowed differential access to a carbohydrate food source and their survival monitored. When stressed by deprivation of a carbohydrate source, mean survival times of RVF virus-exposed mosquitoes were consistently higher than those of unexposed mosquitoes in each of the carbohydrate-deficient experiments. Th...

Rickettsiales are important zoonotic pathogens, causing severe disease in humans globally. Although mosquitoes are an important vector for diverse pathogens, with the exception of members of the genus Wolbachia little is known about their role in the transmission of Rickettsiales. Herein, Rickettsiales were identified by PCR in five species of mosquitoes (Anopheles sinensis, Armigeres subalbatu...

BACKGROUND Existing molecular assays for filarial parasite DNA in mosquitoes cannot distinguish between infected mosquitoes that contain any stage of the parasite and infective mosquitoes that harbor third stage larvae (L3) capable of establishing new infections in humans. We now report development of a molecular L3-detection assay for Brugia malayi in vectors based on RT-PCR detection of an L3...