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The southern house mosquito, Culex quinquefasciatus, is a vector for the causative agents of arbovirus encephalitis and lymphatic filariasis (> 100 million people infected; 45 million people seriously disabled). Historically, chemicals have proven to be the most effective mosquito control agents; however resistant vector populations have developed due to the indiscriminate use of insecticides. This does not, of course, exclude all chemicals as useful control agents. Mosquitoes use various volatile chemicals as behavioural cues, particularly in seeking for hosts and oviposition sites (e.g. Puri et al., 2006; Allan et al., 2006). Human skin emanates with between 300 and 400 chemicals (Bernier et al., 2000) but only a fraction of these volatiles have proven attractive to mosquitoes (e.g. Ghaninia et al., 2007; Meijerlink et al., 2001).
Using 45 volatile compounds attractive to Cx. quinquefasciatus, we are characterising the functional classes of trichoid sensilla on the antennae by single sensillum recording (SSR). Since mosquito behaviour alters significantly following a blood meal, we hypothesise that the response profiles of olfactory sensilla will change following a blood meal. To test this hypothesis, antennal sensilla of sugar fed (blood naïve) adult females were assessed by SSR and compared to the responses from gravid females.
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Funding
FORMAS
Personnel
Sharon Hill, Rickard Ignell
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