title: Melanization of plasmodium falciparum and C-25 sephadex beads by field-caught Anopheles gambiae (Diptera: Culicidae) from southern Tanzania.
abstract: The melanization responses of field-captured Anopheles gambiae s.l. toward oocysts of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum or negatively charged (C-25) Sephadex beads were determined. Only two of 431 infected mosquitoes harboured melanized oocysts. However, 90% of field-captured mosquitoes melanized C-25 Sephadex beads. The effects of age, glucose concentration and blood meal on the melanization response of an An gambiae s.s. laboratory colony toward C-25 beads were also assayed. All newly emerged females (which did not blood-feed) melanized the beads. By 4 d postemergence, there was a marked reduction in melanization response, particularly among those mosquitoes that had not blood fed. A blood meal, however, taken by 4-d-old mosquitoes increased their immune response as did high glucose concentrations in the nonblood-fed group. These data indicate that C-25 Sephadex beads can estimate the general strength of An. gambiae's immune response. However, C-25 beads do not accurately model An. gambiae's susceptibility to P falciparum oocysts in natural populations. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of field refractoriness in An. gambiae s.l.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, Institute of Biological Science, University of Aarhus, Universitetsparken, Denmark.
authors.forename: Alex
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schwartz
authors.forename: Jacob C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Koella
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000852:Anopheles / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000469:parasitology; D003911:Dextrans; D005260:Female; D008543:Melanins / Q000378:metabolism*; D008863:Microspheres; D009865:Oocytes; D010963:Plasmodium falciparum / Q000378:metabolism*; D013636:Tanzania
chemical_list: D003911:Dextrans; D008543:Melanins; C025614:sephadex