DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Effects of Larval Competition on Vector Competence of Container Mosquitoes Aedes Albopictus and Aedes Aegypti

幼虫竞争对容器蚊白纹伊蚊和埃及伊蚊媒介能力的影响。 由于有限的食物和高幼虫密度的竞争通常发生在占据容器栖息地的蚊子之间，并影响它们的生存，生长，发育和成年大小。 然而，关于幼虫之间的竞争性相互作用如何影响成年雌性对感染和传播的易感性（即，媒介能力）的蚊子传播的病原体。 该提案测试已知由幼虫竞争引起的蚊子性能的变化是否与登革热病毒载体能力的变化有关。 一系列不同幼虫密度的实验将测试竞争对埃及伊蚊和白纹伊蚊自然种群和实验室菌落的媒介能力的影响，这两种伊蚊是自然界中登革热病毒最重要的传播者。 从竞争实验中获得的成年蚊子将被给予登革热感染性血粉，并将用标准病毒学程序测量媒介能力。 迄今为止使用辛德比斯病毒模型取得的进展表明，与拥挤条件相比，不拥挤的幼虫条件始终导致蚊子的上级表现，但与直觉相反，导致辛德比斯感染减少。 用一种不相关的登革热病毒进行的拟议实验将表明结果的普遍性，以及实验室蚊子和自然种群的反应是否不同。 这项研究对于探索早期生命阶段的生态因素如何影响成年吸血昆虫的媒介能力是新颖的。

Effects of larval competition on vector competence of container mosquitoes Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegyptiProject Summary: . Competition due to limited food and high larval density occurs commonly among mosquitoes that occupy container habitats and influences their survivorship, growth, development, and adult size. Little is known, however, as to how competitive interactions among larvae influence the susceptibility of adult females to infection and transmission (i.e., vector competence) of mosquito-borne pathogens. This proposal tests whether variation in mosquito performance known to arise from larval competition is associated with variation in vector competence for dengue virus. A series of experiments varying larval density will test for effects of competition on vector competence of natural populations and laboratory colonies of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, the two most important transmitters of dengue virus in nature. Adult mosquitoes derived from competition experiments will be given a dengue-infectious blood meal, and vector competence will be measured with standard virological procedures. Progress to date using Sindbis, a model virus, showed that uncrowded larval conditions consistently resulted in superior mosquito performance compared to crowded conditions but, counterintuitively, resulted in decreased infection with Sindbis. The proposed experiments with dengue, an unrelated virus, will indicate the generality of results and whether mosquitoes from the laboratory and natural populations differ in responses. This research is novel for exploring how ecological factors in an early life stage may influence vector competence in adult, blood-feeding insects.