In response to years of intense selection pressure by organophosphate insecticides, several different insecticide resistance mechanisms have evolved in natural populations of the mosquito Culex pipiens. We examined interactions between two of the most important mechanisms using a four-compartment model of insecticide pharmacokinetics. The joint effect of different mechanisms of resistance can b...

The esterase-based insecticide resistance mechanisms characterised to date predominantly involve elevation of activity through gene amplification allowing increased levels of insecticide sequestration, or point mutations within the esterase structural genes which change their substrate specificity. The amplified esterases are subject to various types of gene regulation in different insect speci...

We develop a flexible, two-locus model for the spread of insecticide resistance applicable to mosquito species that transmit human diseases such as malaria. The model allows differential exposure of males and females, allows them to encounter high or low concentrations of insecticide, and allows selection pressures and dominance values to differ depending on the concentration of insecticide enc...

Numerous studies have shown that German cockroaches, Blattella germanica (L.), are often resistant to insecticides in settings where insecticides have been used extensively in the past. We have now examined resistance in German cockroaches collected in homes in which insecticide usage has been minimal, and resident-initiated at best. Resistance to propoxur, chlorpyrifos, pyrethrins, permethrin,...

Descriptions of the World Health Organization standard methods of assessing susceptibility or resistance in larval and in adult mosquitoes are presented, and the evaluation of their results are discussed. Other susceptibility test methods are also mentioned, including those based on esterase zymograms. Recent work on the biochemical mechanisms of resistance and cross-resistance are reviewed, al...

BACKGROUND The diamondback moth Plutella xyllostella has developed a high level of resistance to the latest insecticide chlorantraniliprole. A better understanding of P. xylostella's resistance mechanism to chlorantraniliprole is needed to develop effective approaches for insecticide resistance management. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS To provide a comprehensive insight into the resistance mechanisms of...

Dengue is an important mosquito borne viral disease in Martinique Island (French West Indies). The viruses responsible for dengue are transmitted by Aedes aegypti, an indoor day-biting mosquito. The most effective proven method for disease prevention has been by vector control by various chemical or biological means. Unfortunately insecticide resistance has already been observed on the Island a...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The evolution of insecticide-resistance in malaria vectors is emerging as a serious challenge for the control of malaria. Modelling the spread of insecticide-resistance is an essential tool to understand the evolutionary pressures and dynamics caused by the application of insecticides. METHODOLOGY We developed a population-genetic model of the spread of insecticide-r...