MICROBIAL=BASED PRODUCTION OF ANOPHELES GAMBIAE

在疟疾流行地区，按蚊在其水生幼虫栖息地产生的蚊子是其密度的主要决定因素。在自然界中，微生物是蚊子幼虫天然食物的重要组成部分；我们在Parent Grant to This FIRCA应用程序下的工作表明，微生物数量和质量的变化会导致幼虫生长不同，从而导致成虫生产力的变化。我们认为，微生物对蚊子幼虫的重要性在它们的生物学中创造了一个薄弱环节，可能被用来管理蚊子种群。通过了解微生物如何向蚊子幼虫提供营养，维持和限制蚊子幼虫的生长，对幼虫自然致病，或者可以通过工程使其致病，我们可以确定幼虫栖息地中可能易于操纵的生物因素。在这项建议中，我们将量化营养状况，描述微生物群落，并将冈比亚按蚊幼虫栖息地的微生物生产与成蚊生产联系起来。在肯尼亚西部的阿森博湾研究区。这一应用的肯尼亚合作者John M.Vulule博士正在对本研究区域120平方公里区域内这些生境的分布和化学成分进行研究，并发现1,766个生境分布在57个区域。我们假设这些栖息地是营养贫乏的，并同时表现出藻类自养生产力和细菌异养生产力；前者可能对蚊子的生长产生更大的影响。方法包括采样生境水和量化无机和有机营养状况；使用直接计数和细菌分离和鉴定来表征微生物群落；以及与藻类和细菌生产力估计有关的定量幼虫生长研究。

The production of Anopheles mosquitoes from their aquatic, larval habitats is the primary determinant of their density in malaria endemic areas. In nature, microorganisms form an essential component of the natural diet of larval mosquitoes; our work under the Parent Grant to this FIRCA application indicates that variation in quantity and quality of microorganisms results in variable larval growth, and therefore adult productivity. We argue that the significance of microorganisms to larval mosquitoes creates a weak link in their biology that can potentially be exploited to manage mosquito populations. By understanding how microorganisms supply nutrients to larval mosquitoes, sustain and limit larval mosquito growth, are naturally pathogenic to larvae, or can be engineered to be pathogenic, we can identify biological factors in larval habitats that may be amenable to manipulation. In this proposal, we will quantify the nutrient regime, characterize the microbial community, and link microbial production to adult mosquito production in larval habitats of the mosquito Anopheles gambiae s.1. in the Asembo Bay study area in western Kenya. The Kenyan collaborator for this application, Dr. John M. Vulule, has ongoing studies of the distribution and chemical composition of these habitats in a 120 km2 zone of this study area, and has found 1,766 habitats clustered into 57 areas. We hypothesize that these habitats are nutrient poor, and show both algal autotrophic productivity and bacterial heterotrophic productivity; the former is likely to weigh more significantly to mosquito growth. Methods include sampling habitat water and quantifying inorganic and organic nutrient regimes; characterization of the microbial community using direct count and bacterial isolation and identification; and quantitative larval growth studies linked to estimations of algal and bacterial productivity.