title: Upwind responses of Anopheles stephensi to carbon dioxide and L-lactic acid: an olfactometer study.
abstract: Excretion of carbon dioxide and L-lactic acid through exhalation and perspiration provides olfactory signals to mosquitoes which allow them to find and bite humans; however, mosquito species differ in this regard. This study investigated upwind responses of Anopheles stephensi, mysorensis form, an important malaria vector in Asia, to carbon dioxide and L-lactic acid under laboratory conditions. While a minimal dose of carbon dioxide (90 ppm) activated the mosquitoes, 10 times this amount suppressed them. L-lactic acid alone did not produce a significant effect by itself, but addition of 6 microg/min of L-lactic acid to a range of 90 to 410 ppm carbon dioxide resulted in attraction. The results provide further support for the hypothesis that CO2 plays an important role in the host-seeking behaviour of zoophilic mosquitoes, and suggests that L-lactic acid might play a more critical role than CO2 in the attraction of An. stephensi.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Parasitology, School of Medicine, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Islamic Republic of lran.
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Omrani
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Vatandoost
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Oshaghi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rahimi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000852:Anopheles / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D007303:Insect Vectors / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D019344:Lactic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology*; D055696:Olfactory Perception / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D014919:Wind
chemical_list: D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D019344:Lactic Acid