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Key to Controlling Dengue Fever Linked to Chemistry of Mosquito Sex
Understanding the sex life of a mosquito may reveal the key to controlling diseases such West Nile virus and dengue fever, a new study has said.
Researchers at Cornell University have uncovered a chemical ballet that takes place between aedes aegypti mosquitoes during sex. The study found that more than 100 proteins in male sperm permanently alter a female's tendencies to feed, produce eggs and mate.
The paper's lead author, Laura Sirot, a research associate at Cornell, did the work in the labs of co-authors Mariana Wolfner, professor of molecular biology and genetics, and Laura Harrington, associate professor of entomology.
While previous research by this team identified some reproductive proteins produced in male mosquitoes, "this is the first study to identify the male proteins that are actually transferred to the female" during mating, said Wolfner.
By isolating these proteins, researchers said they might one day develop a birth control approach for female mosquitoes that spread the dengue, yellow fever and West Nile viruses. There is currently no effective treatment for dengue fever, a potentially lethal infection that affects millions of people each year.
The researchers found 93 seminal fluid proteins and 52 sperm proteins in the females. Eventually, researchers might be able to use these proteins to develop innovative mosquito control strategies, such as reducing egg production and curbing the female's appetite for blood, which could ultimately reduce the spread of mosquito-borne, life-threatening illnesses.
Researchers at Cornell University have uncovered a chemical ballet that takes place between aedes aegypti mosquitoes during sex. The study found that more than 100 proteins in male sperm permanently alter a female's tendencies to feed, produce eggs and mate.
The paper's lead author, Laura Sirot, a research associate at Cornell, did the work in the labs of co-authors Mariana Wolfner, professor of molecular biology and genetics, and Laura Harrington, associate professor of entomology.
While previous research by this team identified some reproductive proteins produced in male mosquitoes, "this is the first study to identify the male proteins that are actually transferred to the female" during mating, said Wolfner.
By isolating these proteins, researchers said they might one day develop a birth control approach for female mosquitoes that spread the dengue, yellow fever and West Nile viruses. There is currently no effective treatment for dengue fever, a potentially lethal infection that affects millions of people each year.
The researchers found 93 seminal fluid proteins and 52 sperm proteins in the females. Eventually, researchers might be able to use these proteins to develop innovative mosquito control strategies, such as reducing egg production and curbing the female's appetite for blood, which could ultimately reduce the spread of mosquito-borne, life-threatening illnesses.
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More News on: Dengue Fever, Yellow Fever, Dengue / Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever, Malaria-water, Malaria, Mosquito Diseases, Dengue and Homeopathy, Chikungunya and Homeopathy, Febrile Fits / Febrile Convulsions , Sex Facts
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