Examination of Odorant Receptors in Vector Mosquitoes

描述(由申请人提供)：化学感觉反应是控制昆虫几种基本行为的关键组成部分，这些行为是导致许多重要人类疾病的病原体的媒介。特别是，嗅觉在食血雌性蚊子的寻找宿主和产卵选择行为中发挥着重要作用，因此，它是蚊子传播疟疾、登革热、黄热病和西尼罗河病毒脑炎等疾病的关键组成部分。在此背景下，并与我们的同事一起，我们对非洲主要疟疾媒介冈比亚按蚊和虫媒埃及伊蚊的嗅觉信号转导级联的几个元件进行了分子和细胞研究。对这些系统中嗅觉机制及其潜在化学线索的深入了解可能有助于深入了解昆虫行为反应的一般过程，特别是通过媒介传播疾病的过程，并可能有助于开发新的蚊子控制策略。我们在这两种蚊子系统中嗅觉过程的几个方面的表征方面取得了重大进展，其中包括鉴定和初步表征了蚊子中的气味受体蛋白家族。Gbiae(Agors)和Ae.位于嗅觉信号通路核心的埃及伊蚊(AaOR)。在这些进展的基础上，这项竞争性更新的建议侧重于扩展我们正在进行的计划的几个要素，包括表征：(1)Agors和AaRs之间的结构/功能关系，(2)Agors和同源气味结合蛋白(AgOBP)在体内幼虫嗅觉和气味编码中的作用，以及(3)怀孕雌性成虫产卵地点选择的分子事件。 与公共卫生相关：我们已经对嗅觉(嗅觉)的元素进行了分子和细胞检查，这些元素在很大程度上驱动了疟疾和虫媒病毒媒介蚊子的几种重要行为。对这些系统中嗅觉机制及其潜在化学线索的深入了解，可能有助于深入了解蚊子行为反应和病媒传播疾病的过程。这些信息可能有助于开发新的蚊子控制策略。到目前为止，我们已经取得了重大进展，现在建议扩展我们对两种蚊子系统嗅觉过程的几个方面的表征，重点是气味受体蛋白大家族在蚊子中的作用和相互作用。Gbiae(Agors)和Ae.位于嗅觉信号通路核心的埃及伊蚊(AaOR)。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Chemosensory responses are critical components in the control of several essential behaviors of insects that are vectors for pathogens responsible for many important human diseases. In particular, olfaction plays a major role in host seeking and oviposition selection behaviors of blood-feeding female mosquitoes and, as such, constitutes a critical component of the mosquito's ability to transmit diseases such as malaria, dengue, yellow fever and West Nile virus encephalitis. Within this context, and together with our colleagues, we have undertaken a molecular and cellular examination of several elements of the olfactory signal transduction cascade in the principal African malaria vector mosquito Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto and the arbovirus vector Aedes aegypti. An increased understanding of olfactory mechanisms and their underlying chemical cues in these systems may provide insight into the processes of insect behavioral responses in general and disease transmission by vectors in particular and would likely be instrumental in the development of novel mosquito control strategies. We have made significant progress in the characterization of several aspects of olfactory process in both mosquito systems leading to, among other things, the identification and initial characterizations of a family of odorant receptor proteins in An. gambiae (AgORs) and Ae. aegypti (AaORs) that lie at the heart of the olfactory signaling pathway. Building on those advances, this proposal for competitive renewal focuses on extending several elements of our ongoing program including characterization of: (1) structure/function relationships between AgORs and AaORs, (2) the role of AgORs and cognate odorant binding proteins (AgOBPs) in the context of larval olfaction and odor coding in vivo and (3) the molecular events underlying oviposition site selection by gravid adult females. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: We have undertaken a molecular and cellular examination of elements of the sense of smell (olfaction) that largely drive several important behaviors in malaria and arbovirus vector mosquitoes. An increased understanding of olfactory mechanisms and their underlying chemical cues in these systems may provide insight into the processes of mosquito behavioral responses and disease transmission by vectors. This information would likely be instrumental in the development of novel mosquito control strategies. Thus far, we have made significant progress and now propose to extend, our characterization of several aspects of olfactory process in both mosquito systems that focus on the role and interactions of a large family of odorant receptor proteins in An. gambiae (AgORs) and Ae. aegypti (AaORs) that lie at the heart of the olfactory signaling pathway.