Evidence of limited polyandry in a natural population of Aedes aegypti
Autor(es): Richardson Joshua B; Jameson Samuel B; Gloria-Soria Andrea; Wesson Dawn M; Powell Jeffrey
Resumo: The mosquito Aedes aegypti is a vector of yellow fever, dengue, and chikungunya. Control of the insect is crucial to stop the spread of dengue and chikungunya, so it is critically important to understand its mating behavior. Primarily, based on laboratory behavior, it has long been assumed that Ae. aegypti females mate once in their lifetime. However, multiple inseminations have been observed in semi-field and laboratory settings, and in closely related species. Here, we report the first evidence of polyandry in a natural population of Ae. aegypti. Female Ae. aegypti were captured around the New Orleans, LA, metropolitan area. They were offered a blood meal and allowed to lay eggs, which were reared to the third-instar larval stage. A parentage analysis using four microsatellite loci was performed. Out of 48 families, 3 showed evidence of multiple paternity. An expanded analysis of these three families found that one family group included offspring contributed by three fathers, and the other two included offspring from two fathers. This result establishes that polyandry can occur in a small proportion of Ae. aegypti females in a natural setting. This could complicate future genetic control efforts and has implications for sampling for population genetics.
Imprenta: The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, v. 93, n. 1, p. 189-193, 2015
Identificador do objeto digital: 10.4269/ajtmh.14-0718
Descritores: Aedes aegypti - Genome ; Aedes aegypti - Molecular Structure ; Aedes aegypti - Pathogenesis ; Aedes aegypti - Sexual ; Aedes aegypti - Chikungunya Fever ; Aedes aegypti - Dengue ; Aedes aegypti - Public health
Data de publicação: 2015
