Larval Temperature-Food Effects on Adult Mosquito Infection and Vertical Transmission of Dengue-1 Virus.
Temperature-food interactions in the larval environment can affect life history and population growth of container mosquitoes Aedes aegypti (L.) and Aedes albopictus Skuse, the primary vectors of chikungunya and dengue viruses. We used Ae. aegypti, Ae. albopictus, and dengue-1 virus (DENV-1) from Florida to investigate whether larval rearing temperature can alter the effects of larval food levels on Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus life history and DENV-1 infection and vertical transmission. Although we found no effect of larval treatments on survivorship to adulthood, DENV-1 titer, or DENV-1 vertical transmission, rates of vertical transmission up to 16-24% were observed in Ae. albopictus and Ae. aegypti, which may contribute to maintenance of this virus in nature. Larval treatments had no effect on number of progeny and DENV-1 infection in Ae. aegypti, but the interaction between temperature and food affected number of progeny and DENV-1 infection of the female Ae. albopictus parent. The cooler temperature (24°C) yielded the most progeny and this effect was accentuated by high food relative to the other conditions. Low and high food led to the highest (∼90%) and lowest (∼65%) parental infection at the cooler temperature, respectively, whereas intermediate infection rates (∼75-80%) were observed for all food conditions at the elevated temperature. These results suggest that temperature and food availability have minimal influence on rate of vertical transmission and a stronger influence on adults of Ae. albopictus than of Ae. aegypti, which could have consequences for dengue virus epidemiology.
University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, 200 9th St. S.E., Vero Beach, FL 32962 (eva.a.buckner@gmail.com; bwalto@ufl.edu; lounibos@ufl.edu), Current address: Manatee County Mosquito Control District, 2317 2nd Ave. West, Palmetto, FL 34221, and.
Eva A
EA
Buckner
University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, 200 9th St. S.E., Vero Beach, FL 32962 (eva.a.buckner@gmail.com; bwalto@ufl.edu; lounibos@ufl.edu), bwalto@ufl.edu.
Barry W
BW
Alto
University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, 200 9th St. S.E., Vero Beach, FL 32962 (eva.a.buckner@gmail.com; bwalto@ufl.edu; lounibos@ufl.edu).
L Philip
LP
Lounibos
D000330:Aedes / Q000502:physiology* / Q000821:virology*; D000818:Animals; D003716:Dengue Virus / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D007814:Larva / Q000502:physiology / Q000821:virology; D013696:Temperature
dengue; infection; larval ecology; transmission