MICROBIAL=BASED PRODUCTION OF ANOPHELES GAMBIAE

在疟疾流行地区，按蚊从其水生幼虫栖息地产生是其密度的主要决定因素。在自然界中，微生物是蚊子幼虫自然饮食的重要组成部分；我们在FIRCA申请的亲本资助下的工作表明，微生物数量和质量的变化会导致幼虫生长的变化，从而影响成虫的生产力。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，可以潜在地利用它来管理蚊子种群。通过了解微生物如何为蚊子幼虫提供营养，维持和限制蚊子幼虫的生长，对幼虫具有自然致病性，或者可以被改造成致病性，我们可以确定幼虫栖息地中可能易于操纵的生物因素。在本研究中，我们将量化冈比亚按蚊（Anopheles gambiae）幼虫栖息地的营养状况、微生物群落特征，并将微生物生产与成蚊生产联系起来。在肯尼亚西部的Asembo湾研究区。这项申请的肯尼亚合作者John M. Vulule博士正在研究该研究区域120平方公里区域内这些栖息地的分布和化学成分，并发现了1766个栖息地聚集在57个地区。我们假设这些生境是营养贫乏的，同时显示藻类自养生产力和细菌异养生产力；前者对蚊子生长的影响可能更大。方法包括取样生境水和定量无机和有机营养状况；利用直接计数和细菌分离鉴定鉴定微生物群落特征；定量幼虫生长研究与估计藻类和细菌的生产力有关。

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.