Epigenetic cross-talk between malaria parasites and their mosquito vectors

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Gómez-Díaz
Keyword(s):  
Cross Talk ◽  
Mosquito Vectors ◽  
Malaria Parasites

Avian Malaria Parasites Share Congeneric Mosquito Vectors

2010 ◽  
Vol 96 (1) ◽  
pp. 144-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Kimura ◽  
J. M. Darbro ◽  
L. C. Harrington
Keyword(s):  
Avian Malaria ◽  
Mosquito Vectors ◽  
Malaria Parasites ◽  
Avian Malaria Parasites

scholarly journals Molecular mechanisms of fertilization and development of malaria parasites in mosquito vectors

2018 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 153-154
Author(s):  
Tomoko Ishino ◽  
Mayumi Tachibana ◽  
Eizo Takashima ◽  
Takafumi Tsuboi ◽  
Motomi Torii
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Mosquito Vectors ◽  
Malaria Parasites

scholarly journals Can malaria parasites manipulate the odour-mediated host preference of their mosquito vectors?

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phuong L. Nguyen ◽  
Amélie Vantaux ◽  
Domonbabele FdS Hien ◽  
Kounbobr R. Dabiré ◽  
Bienvenue K. Yameogo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Host Choice ◽  
Host Feeding ◽  
Parasite Transmission ◽  
Mosquito Vectors ◽  
Outdoor Air ◽  
Malaria Parasites ◽  
Activation Rate ◽  
Human Odour ◽  
Feeding Behaviours

AbstractMalaria parasites can manipulate mosquito feeding behaviours such as motivation and avidity to feed on vertebrate hosts in ways that increase parasite transmission. However, in natural conditions, not all vertebrate blood-sources are suitable hosts for the parasite. Whether malaria parasites can manipulate mosquito host choice in ways that enhance parasite transmission toward suitable hosts and/or reduce mosquito attraction to unsuitable hosts (i.e. specific manipulation) is unknown. To address this question, we experimentally infected three species of mosquito vectors (Anopheles coluzzii, Anopheles gambiae, and Anopheles arabiensis) with wild isolates of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, and examined the effects of immature (oocyst) and mature (sporozoite) infections on mosquito behavioural responses (activation rate and odour choice) to combinations of calf odour, human odour and outdoor air using a dual-port olfactometer. Regardless of parasite developmental stage and mosquito species, P. falciparum infection did not alter mosquito activation rate or their choice for human odours. The overall expression pattern of host choice of all three mosquito species was consistent with a high degree of anthropophily, with both infected and uninfected individuals showing higher attraction toward human odour over calf odour, human odour over outdoor air, and outdoor air over calf odour. Our results suggests that, in this system, the parasite may not be able to manipulate the early long-range behavioural steps involved in the mosquito host-feeding process, including initiation of host-seeking and host orientation. Future studies examining mosquito host-feeding behaviours at a shorter range (i.e. the “at-host” foraging activities) are required to test whether malaria parasites can modify their mosquito host choice to enhance transmission toward suitable hosts and/or reduce biting on unsuitable hosts.

scholarly journals Combination Therapy Counteracts the Enhanced Transmission of Drug-Resistant Malaria Parasites to Mosquitoes

2004 ◽  
Vol 48 (10) ◽  
pp. 3940-3943 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel L. Hallett ◽  
Colin J. Sutherland ◽  
Neal Alexander ◽  
Rosalynn Ord ◽  
Musa Jawara ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Combination Therapy ◽  
Selective Advantage ◽  
Treated Group ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Drug Resistant ◽  
Mosquito Vectors ◽  
Malaria Parasites ◽  
Enhanced Transmission ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT Malaria parasites carrying genes conferring resistance to antimalarials are thought to have a selective advantage which leads to higher rates of transmissibility from the drug-treated host. This is a likely mechanism for the increasing prevalence of parasites with resistance to chloroquine (CQ) and sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine in sub-Saharan Africa. Combination therapy is the key strategy being implemented to reduce the impact of resistance, but its effect on the transmission of genetically resistant parasites from treated patients to mosquito vectors has not been measured directly. In a trial comparing CQ monotherapy to the combination CQ plus artesunate (AS) in Gambian children with uncomplicated falciparum malaria, we measured transmissibility by feeding Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes with blood from 43 gametocyte-positive patients through a membrane. In the CQ-treated group, gametocytes from patients carrying parasites with the CQ resistance-associated allele pfcrt-76T prior to treatment produced infected mosquitoes with 38 times higher Plasmodium falciparum oocyst burdens than mosquitoes fed on gametocytes from patients infected with sensitive parasites (P < 0.001). Gametocytes from parasites carrying the resistance-associated allele pfmdr1-86Y produced 14-fold higher oocyst burdens than gametocytes from patients infected with sensitive parasites (P = 0.011). However, parasites carrying either of these resistance-associated alleles pretreatment were not associated with higher mosquito oocyst burdens in the CQ-AS-treated group. Thus, combination therapy overcomes the transmission advantage enjoyed by drug-resistant parasites.

scholarly journals Adaptive periodicity in the infectivity of malaria gametocytes to mosquitoes

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petra Schneider ◽  
Samuel S. C. Rund ◽  
Natasha L. Smith ◽  
Kimberley F. Prior ◽  
Aidan J. O’Donnell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Feeding ◽  
Blood Parasite ◽  
Parasite Development ◽  
Bed Nets ◽  
Mosquito Vectors ◽  
Plasmodium Chabaudi ◽  
Malaria Parasites ◽  
Rodent Malaria

AbstractThat periodicity in the biting activity of mosquito vectors explains why malaria parasites have evolved rhythms in cycles of asexual replication in the host’s blood was proposed almost 50 years ago. Yet, tests of this hypothesis have proved inconclusive. Using the rodent malaria Plasmodium chabaudi, we examine rhythms in the density and infectivity of transmission forms (gametocytes) in the host’s blood, parasite development inside mosquitoes, and onwards transmission.Moreover, we control for the confounding effects of rhythms in mosquito susceptibility. We reveal that at night, gametocytes are twice as infective to mosquitoes, despite being less numerous in the blood. This enhanced infectiousness at night interacts with mosquito rhythms to increase sporozoite burdens by almost four-fold when mosquitoes feed during their day. Thus, daytime blood-feeding (e.g. driven by the use of bed nets) may render gametocytes less infective, but this is compensated for by the greater susceptibility of mosquitoes.

scholarly journals The application of spectroscopy techniques for diagnosis of malaria parasites and arboviruses and surveillance of mosquito vectors: A systematic review and critical appraisal of evidence

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. e0009218
Author(s):  
Brendon Goh ◽  
Koek Ching ◽  
Ricardo J. Soares Magalhães ◽  
Silvia Ciocchetta ◽  
Michael D. Edstein ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Data Analysis ◽  
Machine Learning Techniques ◽  
Malaria Vectors ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Mosquito Vectors ◽  
Malaria Parasites ◽  
Mid Infrared ◽  
Mid Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Raman And Infrared Spectroscopy

Spectroscopy-based techniques are emerging diagnostic and surveillance tools for mosquito-borne diseases. This review has consolidated and summarised recent research in the application of Raman and infrared spectroscopy techniques including near- and mid-infrared spectroscopy for malaria and arboviruses, identified knowledge gaps, and recommended future research directions. Full-length peer-reviewed journal articles related to the application of Raman and infrared (near- and mid-infrared) spectroscopy for malaria and arboviruses were systematically searched in PUBMED, MEDILINE, and Web of Science databases using the PRISMA guidelines. In text review of identified studies included the methodology of spectroscopy technique used, data analysis applied, wavelengths used, and key findings for diagnosis of malaria and arboviruses and surveillance of mosquito vectors. A total of 58 studies met the inclusion criteria for our systematic literature search. Although there was an increased application of Raman and infrared spectroscopy-based techniques in the last 10 years, our review indicates that Raman spectroscopy (RS) technique has been applied exclusively for the diagnosis of malaria and arboviruses. The mid-infrared spectroscopy (MIRS) technique has been assessed for the diagnosis of malaria parasites in human blood and as a surveillance tool for malaria vectors, whereas the near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technique has almost exclusively been applied as a surveillance tool for malaria and arbovirus vectors. Conclusions/Significance The potential of RS as a surveillance tool for malaria and arbovirus vectors and MIRS for the diagnosis and surveillance of arboviruses is yet to be assessed. NIRS capacity as a surveillance tool for malaria and arbovirus vectors should be validated under field conditions, and its potential as a diagnostic tool for malaria and arboviruses needs to be evaluated. It is recommended that all 3 techniques evaluated simultaneously using multiple machine learning techniques in multiple epidemiological settings to determine the most accurate technique for each application. Prior to their field application, a standardised protocol for spectra collection and data analysis should be developed. This will harmonise their application in multiple field settings allowing easy and faster integration into existing disease control platforms. Ultimately, development of rapid and cost-effective point-of-care diagnostic tools for malaria and arboviruses based on spectroscopy techniques may help combat current and future outbreaks of these infectious diseases.

scholarly journals Mosquito vector proteins homologous to α1-3 galactosyl transferases of tick vectors in the context of protective immunity against malaria and hypersensitivity to vector bites

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ranjan Ramasamy
Keyword(s):  
Anopheles Gambiae ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Ixodes Scapularis ◽  
Blood Feeding ◽  
New World Monkeys ◽  
Mosquito Vector ◽  
Mosquito Vectors ◽  
Malaria Parasites ◽  
Tick Vector ◽  
Galactosyl Transferase

Abstract Background An epitope, Galα1-3Galβ1-4GlcNAc-R, termed α-gal, is present in glycoconjugates of New World monkeys (platyrrhines) and other mammals but not in hominoids and Old World monkeys (catarrhines). The difference is due to the inactivation of α1-3 galactosyl transferase (α1-3 GT) genes in catarrhines. Natural antibodies to α-gal are therefore developed in catarrhines but not platyrrhines and other mammals. Hypersensitivity reactions are commonly elicited by mosquito and tick vector bites. IgE antibodies against α-gal cause food allergy to red meat in persons who have been exposed to tick bites. Three enzymes synthesising the terminal α1-3-linked galactose in α-gal, that are homologous to mammalian α and β1-4 GTs but not mammalian α1-3 GTs, were recently identified in the tick vector Ixodes scapularis. IgG and IgM antibodies to α-gal are reported to protect against malaria because mosquito-derived sporozoites of malaria parasites express α-gal on their surface. This article explores the possibility that the α-gal in sporozoites are acquired from glycoconjugates synthesised by mosquitoes rather than through de novo synthesis by sporozoites. Methods The presence of proteins homologous to the three identified tick α1-3 GTs and mammalian α1-3 GTs in two important mosquito vectors, Aedes aegypti and Anopheles gambiae, as well as Plasmodium malaria parasites, was investigated by BLASTp analysis to help clarify the source of the α-gal on sporozoite surfaces. Results Anopheles gambiae and Ae. aegypti possessed several different proteins homologous to the three I. scapularis proteins with α1-3 GT activity, but not mammalian α1-3 GTs. The putative mosquito α1-3 GTs possessed conserved protein domains characteristic of glycosyl transferases. However, the genus Plasmodium lacked proteins homologous to the three I. scapularis proteins with α1-3 GT activity and mammalian α1-3 GTs. Conclusions The putative α1-3 GTs identified in the two mosquito vectors may synthesise glycoconjugates containing α-gal that can be transferred to sporozoite surfaces before they are inoculated into skin during blood feeding. The findings merit further investigation because of their implications for immunity against malaria, hypersensitivity to mosquito bites, primate evolution, and proposals for immunisation against α-gal. Graphic abstract

Malaria Parasites Alter Human Odor to Attract Mosquito Vectors

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (7) ◽  
pp. 547-549 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hillery C. Metz ◽  
Carolyn S. McBride
Keyword(s):  
Mosquito Vectors ◽  
Malaria Parasites ◽  
Human Odor
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