Reduced survival and reproductive success generates selection pressure for the dengue mosquito Aedes aegypti to evolve resistance against infection by the microsporidian parasite Vavraia culicis.

ABSTRACT: The success and sustainability of control measures aimed at reducing the transmission of mosquito-borne diseases will depend on how they influence the fitness of mosquitoes in targeted populations. We investigated the effects of the microsporidian parasite Vavraia culicis on the survival, blood-feeding behaviour and reproductive success of female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, the main vector of dengue. Infection reduced survival to adulthood and increased adult female mosquito age-dependent mortality relative to uninfected individuals; this additional mortality was closely correlated with the number of parasite spores they harboured when they died. In the first gonotrophic cycle, infected females were less likely to blood-feed, took smaller meals when they did so, and developed fewer eggs than

SUBMITTER: Sy VE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4001445 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature