title: Changing domesticity of Aedes aegypti in northern peninsular Malaysia: reproductive consequences and potential epidemiological implications.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The domestic dengue vector Aedes aegypti mosquitoes breed in indoor containers. However, in northern peninsular Malaysia, they show equal preference for breeding in both indoor and outdoor habitats. To evaluate the epidemiological implications of this peridomestic adaptation, we examined whether Ae. aegypti exhibits decreased survival, gonotrophic activity, and fecundity due to lack of host availability and the changing breeding behavior.
  
  
  RESULTS
  This yearlong field surveillance identified Ae. aegypti breeding in outdoor containers on an enormous scale. Through a sequence of experiments incorporating outdoors and indoors adapting as well as adapted populations, we observed that indoors provided better environment for the survival of Ae. aegypti and the observed death patterns could be explained on the basis of a difference in body size. The duration of gonotrophic period was much shorter in large-bodied females. Fecundity tended to be greater in indoor acclimated females. We also found increased tendency to multiple feeding in outdoors adapted females, which were smaller in size compared to their outdoors breeding counterparts.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The data presented here suggest that acclimatization of Ae. aegypti to the outdoor environment may not decrease its lifespan or gonotrophic activity but rather increase breeding opportunities (increased number of discarded containers outdoors), the rate of larval development, but small body sizes at emergence. Size is likely to be correlated with disease transmission. In general, small size in Aedes females will favor increased blood-feeding frequency resulting in higher population sizes and disease occurrence.
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia. gmsaifur20@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Rahman G M
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Saifur
authors.forename: Hamady
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Dieng
authors.forename: Ahmad Abu
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Hassan
authors.forename: Md Rawi Che
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Salmah
authors.forename: Tomomitsu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Satho
authors.forename: Fumio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Miake
authors.forename: Ahmad
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hamdan
mesh_terms: D000330:Aedes / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000254:growth & development*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D049628:Body Size; D003625:Data Collection; D003715:Dengue / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility / Q000502:physiology; D005843:Geography; D006798:Housing; D007814:Larva / Q000254:growth & development; D008018:Life Cycle Stages / Q000502:physiology; D008296:Malaysia; D010058:Oviposition / Q000502:physiology; D010063:Ovum / Q000166:cytology; D012098:Reproduction / Q000502:physiology; D016019:Survival Analysis; D014921:Wings, Animal / Q000033:anatomy & histology