scholarly journals Dehydration bouts prompt increased activity and blood feeding by mosquitoes

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard W. Hagan ◽  
Elise M. Szuter ◽  
Andrew E. Rosselot ◽  
Christopher J. Holmes ◽  
Samantha C. Siler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Loss ◽  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Disease Modeling ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Blood Feeding ◽  
Dehydration Stress ◽  
Terrestrial Invertebrates ◽  
The Difference ◽  
General Response ◽  
The Impact

AbstractMosquitoes are prone to dehydration and respond to this stress through multiple mechanisms, but previous studies have examined very specific responses and fail to provide an encompassing view of the role that dehydration has on mosquito biology. This study examined underlying changes in biology of the northern house mosquito, Culex pipiens, associated with short bouts of dehydration. We show that dehydration increased blood feeding propensity of mosquitoes, which was the result of both enhanced activity and a higher tendency to land on a host. Mosquitoes exposed to dehydrating conditions with access to water or rehydrated individuals experience no water loss and failed to display behavioral changes. RNA-seq and metabolome analyses following dehydration indicated that factors associated with energy metabolism are altered, specifically the breakdown of trehalose to yield glucose, which likely underlies changes in mosquito activity. Suppression of trehalose breakdown by RNA interference reduced phenotypes associated with dehydration. Comparable results were noted for two other mosquito species, suggesting this is a general response among mosquitoes. Lastly, field-based mesocosm studies using C. pipiens revealed that dehydrated mosquitoes were more likely to host feed, and disease modeling indicates dehydration bouts may increase transmission of West Nile virus. These results suggest that periods of dehydration prompt mosquitoes to utilize blood feeding as a mechanism to obtain water. This dehydration-induced increase in blood feeding is likely to intensify disease transmission during periods of low water availability.SignificanceDehydration stress has substantial impacts on the biology of terrestrial invertebrates. To date, no studies have elucidated the difference between dehydration exposure and realized water loss in relation to mosquito behavior and physiology. Our experiments show that direct dehydration stress increases mosquito activity and subsequent blood feeding, likely as a mechanism to locate and utilize a bloodmeal for rehydration. These dehydration-induced phenotypes were linked to altered carbohydrate metabolism that acts as a source of energy. This study provides important insight into the impact of mosquito-dehydration dynamics on disease transmission that is likely general among mosquitoes.

scholarly journals Laboratory colonization by Dirofilaria immitis alters the microbiome of female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdulsalam Adegoke ◽  
Erik Neff ◽  
Amie Geary ◽  
Montana Ciara Husser ◽  
Kevin Wilson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aedes Aegypti ◽  
Dirofilaria Immitis ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Klebsiella Oxytoca ◽  
Variable Region ◽  
Blood Feeding ◽  
Mosquito Vector ◽  
Filarial Nematodes ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background: The ability of blood feeding arthropods to successfully acquire and transmit pathogens of medical and veterinary importance has been shown to be interfered with, or enhanced by, the arthropod’s native microbiome. Mosquitoes transmit viruses, protozoan and filarial nematodes, the majority of which contribute to the 17% of infectious disease cases worldwide. Dirofilaria immitis , a mosquito transmitted by filarial nematodes of dogs and cats, is vectored by several mosquito species including Aedes aegypti . Methods: In this study, we investigated the impact of D. immitis colonization on the microbiome of laboratory reared female A. aegypti . Metagenomic analysis of the V3-V4 variable region of the microbial 16SRNA was used for identification of the microbial differences down to species level. Results We generated a total of 1068 OTUs representing 16 phyla, 181 genera and 271 bacterial species. Overall, in order of abundance, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Firmicutes were the most represented phylum with D. immitis infected mosquitoes having more of Proteobacteria (71%) than uninfected mosquitoes (56.9%). An interesting finding in this study is the detection of Klebsiella oxytoca in relatively similar abundance in infected and uninfected mosquitoes, suggesting a possible endosymbiotic relationship, and has been previously shown to indirectly compete for nutrients with fungi on domestic housefly eggs and larva. While D. immitis colonization has no effect on the overall species richness, we identified significant differences in the composition of selected bacteria genus and phylum between the two groups. We also reported distinct compositional and phylogenetic differences in the individual bacteria species when commonly identified bacteria were compared. Conclusions In conclusion, this is the first study to the best of our knowledge to understand the impact of a filarial infection on the microbiome of its mosquito vector. Further studies are required to identify bacteria species that could play an important role in the mosquito biology. While the microbiome composition of A. aegypti mosquito have been previously reported, our study shows that in an effort to establish itself, a filarial nematode modifies and alters the overall microbial diversity within its mosquito host.

scholarly journals Laboratory colonization by Dirofilaria immitis alters the microbiome of female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdulsalam Adegoke ◽  
Erik Neff ◽  
Amie Geary ◽  
Montana Ciara Husser ◽  
Kevin Wilson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aedes Aegypti ◽  
Dirofilaria Immitis ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Klebsiella Oxytoca ◽  
Variable Region ◽  
Blood Feeding ◽  
Mosquito Vector ◽  
Filarial Nematodes ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background: The ability of blood-feeding arthropods to successfully acquire and transmit pathogens of medical and veterinary importance has been shown to be interfered with, or enhanced by, the arthropod’s native microbiome. Mosquitoes transmit viruses, protozoan and filarial nematodes, the majority of which contribute to the 17% of infectious disease cases worldwide. Dirofilaria immitis, a mosquito-transmitted filarial nematodes of dogs and cats, is vectored by several mosquito species including Aedes aegypti.Methods: In this study, we investigated the impact of D. immitis colonization on the microbiome of laboratory reared female Ae. aegypti. Metagenomic analysis of the V3-V4 variable region of the microbial 16S RNA gene was used for identification of the microbial differences down to species level.Results: We generated a total of 1068 OTUs representing 16 phyla, 181 genera and 271 bacterial species. Overall, in order of abundance, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Firmicutes were the most represented phylum with D. immitis-infected mosquitoes having more of Proteobacteria (71%) than uninfected mosquitoes (56.9%). An interesting finding in this study is the detection of Klebsiella oxytoca in relatively similar abundance in infected and uninfected mosquitoes, suggesting a possible endosymbiotic relationship, and has been previously shown to indirectly compete for nutrients with fungi on domestic housefly eggs and larvae. While D. immitis colonization has no effect on the overall species richness, we identified significant differences in the composition of selected bacterial genera and phyla between the two groups. We also reported distinct compositional and phylogenetic differences in the individual bacterial species when commonly identified bacteria were compared.Conclusions: In conclusion, this is the first study to the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to understand the impact of a filarial infection on the microbiome of its mosquito vector. Further studies are required to identify bacteria species that could play an important role in the mosquito biology. While the microbiome composition of Ae. aegypti mosquito have been previously reported, our study shows that in an effort to establish itself, a filarial nematode modifies and alters the overall microbial diversity within its mosquito host.

scholarly journals Public health interventions and epidemic intensity during the 1918 influenza pandemic

2007 ◽  
Vol 104 (18) ◽  
pp. 7582-7587 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard J. Hatchett ◽  
Carter E. Mecher ◽  
Marc Lipsitch
Keyword(s):  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Early Phase ◽  
Influenza Pandemic ◽  
Death Rates ◽  
Viral Spread ◽  
Early Implementation ◽  
The Difference ◽  
1918 Influenza ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Multiple Interventions

Nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) intended to reduce infectious contacts between persons form an integral part of plans to mitigate the impact of the next influenza pandemic. Although the potential benefits of NPIs are supported by mathematical models, the historical evidence for the impact of such interventions in past pandemics has not been systematically examined. We obtained data on the timing of 19 classes of NPI in 17 U.S. cities during the 1918 pandemic and tested the hypothesis that early implementation of multiple interventions was associated with reduced disease transmission. Consistent with this hypothesis, cities in which multiple interventions were implemented at an early phase of the epidemic had peak death rates ≈50% lower than those that did not and had less-steep epidemic curves. Cities in which multiple interventions were implemented at an early phase of the epidemic also showed a trend toward lower cumulative excess mortality, but the difference was smaller (≈20%) and less statistically significant than that for peak death rates. This finding was not unexpected, given that few cities maintained NPIs longer than 6 weeks in 1918. Early implementation of certain interventions, including closure of schools, churches, and theaters, was associated with lower peak death rates, but no single intervention showed an association with improved aggregate outcomes for the 1918 phase of the pandemic. These findings support the hypothesis that rapid implementation of multiple NPIs can significantly reduce influenza transmission, but that viral spread will be renewed upon relaxation of such measures.

scholarly journals Inferring high-resolution human mixing patterns for disease modeling

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dina Mistry ◽  
Maria Litvinova ◽  
Ana Pastore y Piontti ◽  
Matteo Chinazzi ◽  
Laura Fumanelli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Disease Modeling ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Effective Population ◽  
Human Contact ◽  
Contact Patterns ◽  
Data Driven Approach ◽  
Mixing Patterns ◽  
The Impact

AbstractMathematical and computational modeling approaches are increasingly used as quantitative tools in the analysis and forecasting of infectious disease epidemics. The growing need for realism in addressing complex public health questions is, however, calling for accurate models of the human contact patterns that govern the disease transmission processes. Here we present a data-driven approach to generate effective population-level contact matrices by using highly detailed macro (census) and micro (survey) data on key socio-demographic features. We produce age-stratified contact matrices for 35 countries, including 277 sub-national administratvie regions of 8 of those countries, covering approximately 3.5 billion people and reflecting the high degree of cultural and societal diversity of the focus countries. We use the derived contact matrices to model the spread of airborne infectious diseases and show that sub-national heterogeneities in human mixing patterns have a marked impact on epidemic indicators such as the reproduction number and overall attack rate of epidemics of the same etiology. The contact patterns derived here are made publicly available as a modeling tool to study the impact of socio-economic differences and demographic heterogeneities across populations on the epidemiology of infectious diseases.

scholarly journals Laboratory colonization by Dirofilaria immitis alters the microbiome of female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdulsalam Adegoke ◽  
Erik Neff ◽  
Amie Geary ◽  
Montana Ciara Husser ◽  
Kevin Wilson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aedes Aegypti ◽  
Dirofilaria Immitis ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Klebsiella Oxytoca ◽  
Variable Region ◽  
Blood Feeding ◽  
Mosquito Vector ◽  
Filarial Nematodes ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background: The ability of blood feeding arthropods to successfully acquire and transmit pathogens of medical and veterinary importance has been shown to be interfered or enhanced by the arthropod’s native microbiome. Mosquitoes transmit bacteria, viruses, protozoan and filarial nematodes, majority of which contributes to the 17% of infectious disease cases worldwide. Dirofilaria immitis, a mosquito transmitted filarial nematodes of dogs and cats, is vectored by several mosquito species including Aedes aegypti.Methods: In this study, we investigated the impact of D. immitis colonization on the microbiome of laboratory reared female A. aegypti. Metagenomic analysis of the V3-V4 variable region of the microbial 16SRNA was used for identification of the microbial differences down to species level.Results: We generated a total of 1068 OTUs representing 16 phyla, 181 genera and 271 bacterial species. Overall, in order of abundance, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Firmicutes were the most represented phylum with D. immitis infected mosquitoes having more of Proteobacteria (71%) than uninfected mosquitoes (56.9%). An interesting finding in this study is the detection of Klebsiella oxytoca in relatively similar abundance in infected and uninfected mosquitoes, suggesting a possible endosymbiotic relationship. It has been previously shown to indirectly compete for nutrients with fungi on the domestic housefly eggs and larva. While D. immitis colonization has no effect on the overall species richness, we identified significant differences in the composition of selected bacteria genus and phylum between the two groups. We also reported distinct compositional and phylogenetic differences in the individual bacteria species when commonly identified bacteria were compared.Conclusions: In conclusion, this is the first study to the best of our knowledge to understand the impact of a filarial infection on the microbiome of its mosquito vector. Further studies is required to identify bacteria species that could play an important role in the mosquito biology. While the microbiome composition of A. aegypti mosquito have been previously reported, our study shows that in an effort to establish itself, a filarial nematode modifies and alters the overall microbial diversity within its mosquito host.

scholarly journals Laboratory colonization by Dirofilaria immitis alters the microbiome of female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdulsalam Adegoke ◽  
Erik Neff ◽  
Amie Geary ◽  
Montana Ciara Husser ◽  
Kevin Wilson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aedes Aegypti ◽  
Dirofilaria Immitis ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Klebsiella Oxytoca ◽  
Variable Region ◽  
Blood Feeding ◽  
Mosquito Vector ◽  
Filarial Nematodes ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background: The ability of blood feeding arthropods to successfully acquire and transmit pathogens of medical and veterinary importance has been shown to be interfered or enhanced by the arthropod’s native microbiome. Mosquitoes transmit bacteria, viruses, protozoan and filarial nematodes, majority of which contributes to the 17% of infectious disease cases worldwide. Dirofilaria immitis, a mosquito transmitted filarial nematodes of dogs and cats, is vectored by several mosquito species including Aedes aegypti.Methods: In this study, we investigated the impact of D. immitis colonization on the microbiome of laboratory reared female A. aegypti. Metagenomic analysis of the V3-V4 variable region of the microbial 16SRNA was used for identification of the microbial differences down to species level.Results: We generated a total of 1068 OTUs representing 16 phyla, 181 genera and 271 bacterial species. Overall, in order of abundance, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Firmicutes were the most represented phylum with D. immitis infected mosquitoes having more of Proteobacteria (71%) than uninfected mosquitoes (56.9%). An interesting finding in this study is the detection of Klebsiella oxytoca in relatively similar abundance in infected and uninfected mosquitoes. It has been previously shown to indirectly compete for nutrients with fungi on the domestic housefly eggs and larva. While not statistically significant, D. immitis infection alters bacterial diversity by reducing the bacterial species richness and abundance.Conclusions: In conclusion, this is the first study to the best of our knowledge to understand the impact of a filarial infection on the microbiome of its mosquito vector. While the microbiome composition of A. aegypti mosquito have been previously reported, our study shows that in an effort to establish itself, a filarial nematode modifies and alters the overall microbial diversity within its mosquito host.

scholarly journals Interpreting mosquito feeding patterns in Australia through an ecological lens; an analysis of blood meal studies.

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eloise B Stephenson ◽  
Amanda Murphy ◽  
Cassie C Jansen ◽  
Alison J Peel ◽  
Hamish McCallum
Keyword(s):  
Blood Meal ◽  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Disease Ecology ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Feeding Patterns ◽  
Larval Habitats ◽  
Culex Annulirostris ◽  
Species Specific ◽  
The Impact

Mosquito-borne pathogens contribute significantly to the global burden of disease, infecting millions of people each year. Mosquito feeding is critical to the transmission dynamics of pathogens, and thus it is important to understanding and interpreting mosquito feeding patterns. In this paper we explore mosquito feeding patterns and their implications for disease ecology through a meta-analysis of published blood meal results collected across Australia from more than 12,000 blood meals from 22 species. To assess mosquito-vertebrate associations and identify mosquitoes on a spectrum of generalist or specialist feeders, we analysed blood meal data in two ways; first using a novel odds ratio analysis, and secondly by calculating Shannon diversity scores. We find that each mosquito species had a unique feeding association with different vertebrates, suggesting species-specific feeding patterns. Broadly, mosquito species could be grouped broadly into those that were primarily ornithophilic and those that fed more often on livestock. Aggregated feeding patterns observed across Australia were not explained by intrinsic variables such as mosquito genetics or larval habitats. We discuss the implications for disease transmission by vector mosquito species classified as generalist-feeders (such as Aedes vigilax and Culex annulirostris), or specialists (such as Aedes aegypti) in light of potential influences on mosquito host choice. Overall, we find that whilst existing blood meal studies in Australia are useful for investigating mosquito feeding patterns, standardisation of blood meal study methodologies and analyses, including the incorporation of vertebrate surveys, would improve predictions of the impact of vector-host interactions on disease ecology. Our analysis can also be used as a framework to explore mosquito-vertebrate associations, in which host availability data is unavailable, in other global systems.

scholarly journals Laboratory colonization by Dirofilaria immitis alters the microbiome of female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdulsalam Adegoke ◽  
Erik Neff ◽  
Amie Geary ◽  
Montana Ciara Husser ◽  
Kevin Wilson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aedes Aegypti ◽  
Dirofilaria Immitis ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Klebsiella Oxytoca ◽  
Variable Region ◽  
Blood Feeding ◽  
Mosquito Vector ◽  
Filarial Nematodes ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background: The ability of blood feeding arthropods to successfully acquire and transmit pathogens of medical and veterinary importance has been shown to be interfered with, or enhanced by, the arthropod’s native microbiome. Mosquitoes transmit viruses, protozoan and filarial nematodes, the majority of which contribute to the 17% of infectious disease cases worldwide. Dirofilaria immitis, a mosquito transmitted by filarial nematodes of dogs and cats, is vectored by several mosquito species including Aedes aegypti.Methods: In this study, we investigated the impact of D. immitis colonization on the microbiome of laboratory reared female A. aegypti. Metagenomic analysis of the V3-V4 variable region of the microbial 16SRNA was used for identification of the microbial differences down to species level.Results We generated a total of 1068 OTUs representing 16 phyla, 181 genera and 271 bacterial species. Overall, in order of abundance, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Firmicutes were the most represented phylum with D. immitis infected mosquitoes having more of Proteobacteria (71%) than uninfected mosquitoes (56.9%). An interesting finding in this study is the detection of Klebsiella oxytoca in relatively similar abundance in infected and uninfected mosquitoes, suggesting a possible endosymbiotic relationship, and has been previously shown to indirectly compete for nutrients with fungi on domestic housefly eggs and larva. While D. immitis colonization has no effect on the overall species richness, we identified significant differences in the composition of selected bacteria genus and phylum between the two groups. We also reported distinct compositional and phylogenetic differences in the individual bacteria species when commonly identified bacteria were compared. Conclusions In conclusion, this is the first study to the best of our knowledge to understand the impact of a filarial infection on the microbiome of its mosquito vector. Further studies are required to identify bacteria species that could play an important role in the mosquito biology. While the microbiome composition of A. aegypti mosquito have been previously reported, our study shows that in an effort to establish itself, a filarial nematode modifies and alters the overall microbial diversity within its mosquito host.

scholarly journals An expert judgment model to predict early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Charles McAndrew ◽  
Nicholas G Reich
Keyword(s):  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Disease Modeling ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Health Decision ◽  
Early Stages ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Global Catastrophe ◽  
Future Outcomes ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The U.S

During early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, forecasts provided actionable information about disease transmission to public health decision-makers. Between February and May 2020, experts in infectious disease modeling made weekly predictions about the impact of the pandemic in the U.S. We aggregated these predictions into consensus predictions. In March and April 2020, experts predicted that the number of COVID-19 related deaths in the U.S. by the end of 2020 would be in the range of 150,000 to 250,000, with scenarios of near 1m deaths considered plausible. The wide range of possible future outcomes underscored the uncertainty surrounding the outbreak's trajectory. Experts' predictions of measurable short-term outcomes had varying levels of accuracy over the surveys but showed appropriate levels of uncertainty when aggregated. An expert consensus model can provide important insight early on in an emerging global catastrophe.

scholarly journals Assessing the blood meal hosts of Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes taeniorhynchus in Isla Santa Cruz, Galápagos

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Samoa Asigau ◽  
Sawsan Salah ◽  
Patricia G. Parker
Keyword(s):  
Feeding Behavior ◽  
Culex Quinquefasciatus ◽  
Blood Meal ◽  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Avian Malaria ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Blood Feeding ◽  
Santa Cruz ◽  
Aedes Taeniorhynchus ◽  
Blood Meals

Abstract Background Blood meal host selection by mosquito vectors is an important component in understanding disease dynamics of pathogens that threaten endemic fauna in isolated islands such as Galápagos. Research on the feeding behavior of mosquitoes can provide clues to the hosts and vectors involved in disease transmission. This information is particularly critical for endemic wildlife fauna in island systems that have evolved without resistance to novel diseases such as avian malaria. The aims of this study were to determine the blood-feeding patterns of two species of mosquitoes found in Galápagos and discuss how their feeding behavior may influence the transmission of pathogens such as avian malaria. Methods In the summer of 2015, we sampled two mosquito species (Aedes taeniorhynchus and Culex quinquefasciatus) across 18 different sites on Isla Santa Cruz, which is the second largest island in Galápagos and has the largest human population. We trapped mosquitoes using CDC light traps and CDC gravid traps and identified sources of blood meals for engorged mosquitoes by sequencing a portion of the vertebrate mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Results Out of 947 female mosquitoes captured, 320 were blood-fed, and PCR amplifications were successful for 301 of the blood meals. Results revealed that both Aedes taeniorhynchus and Culex quinquefasciatus feed from a variety of vertebrate taxa, numerically dominated by humans on Isla Santa Cruz. Conclusions The high proportion of mammalian blood meals could represent locally available and abundant hosts on Santa Cruz. However, host surveys and estimates of relative abundances of vertebrate species will need to accompany mosquito trapping studies on non-inhabited and inhabited islands in Galápagos to further validate this.

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