Detection of Plasmodium sporozoites in mosquitoes by polymerase chain reaction and oligonucleotide rDNA probe, without dissection of the salivary glands.
Dried Anopheles gambiae mosquito head+thorax portions, infected with Plasmodium falciparum sporozoites, were processed by the polymerase chain reaction. The PCR product was hybridized to an oligonucleotide probe (known as 114R or AW34) diagnostic for Plasmodium. The detection level by autoradiography was ten sporozoites per mosquito. Head+thorax of mosquitoes that contained mature P.falciparum oocysts, without sporozoites, gave no positive signal, indicating that the test detects only infective mosquitoes. This test can be applied to wild mosquito specimens collected, prepared and processed at different time intervals. The technique is convenient, highly sensitive, and could be used with a non-radioactive detection system and specific probes to differentiate Plasmodium spp.
Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Wageningen Agricultural University, The Netherlands.
J A
JA
Stoffels
W M
WM
Docters van Leeuwen
R J
RJ
Post
D000818:Animals; D000852:Anopheles / Q000469:parasitology*; D001483:Base Sequence; D015342:DNA Probes; D016054:DNA, Protozoan / Q000032:analysis; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D004210:Dissection; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010963:Plasmodium falciparum / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*; D012469:Salivary Glands / Q000469:parasitology; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
D015342:DNA Probes; D016054:DNA, Protozoan; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal