title: Fitness of wAlbB Wolbachia Infection in Aedes aegypti: Parameter Estimates in an Outcrossed Background and Potential for Population Invasion.
abstract: Wolbachia endosymbionts are potentially useful tools for suppressing disease transmission by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes because Wolbachia can interfere with the transmission of dengue and other viruses as well as causing deleterious effects on their mosquito hosts. Most recent research has focused on the wMel infection, but other infections also influence viral transmission and may spread in natural populations. Here, we focus on the wAlbB infection in an Australian outbred background and show that this infection has many features that facilitate its invasion into natural populations including strong cytoplasmic incompatibility, a lack of effect on larval development, an equivalent mating success to uninfected males and perfect maternal transmission fidelity. On the other hand, the infection has deleterious effects when eggs are held in a dried state, falling between wMel and the more virulent wMelPop Wolbachia strains. The impact of this infection on lifespan also appears to be intermediate, consistent with the observation that this infection has a titer in adults between wMel and wMelPop. Population cage experiments indicate that the wAlbB infection establishes in cages when introduced at a frequency of 22%, suggesting that this strain could be successfully introduced into populations and subsequently persist and spread.
authors.affiliation: Pest and Environmental Adaptation Research Group, Bio21 Institute and School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia; Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Acton, Australia jkaxford@unimelb.edu.au.
authors.forename: Jason K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Axford
authors.affiliation: Pest and Environmental Adaptation Research Group, Bio21 Institute and School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia; Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Acton, Australia.
authors.forename: Perran A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Ross
authors.affiliation: Pest and Environmental Adaptation Research Group, Bio21 Institute and School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia; Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Acton, Australia.
authors.forename: Heng Lin
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Yeap
authors.affiliation: Pest and Environmental Adaptation Research Group, Bio21 Institute and School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia; Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Acton, Australia.
authors.forename: Ashley G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Callahan
authors.affiliation: Pest and Environmental Adaptation Research Group, Bio21 Institute and School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia; Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Acton, Australia.
authors.forename: Ary A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Hoffmann
mesh_terms: D000330:Aedes / Q000382:microbiology*; D000818:Animals; D058491:Bacterial Load; D002470:Cell Survival; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D056084:Genetic Fitness; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions; D008297:Male; D010063:Ovum / Q000382:microbiology / Q000502:physiology; D020577:Wolbachia / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*