First report of natural Wolbachia infections in mosquitoes from Cuba.

Mosquitoes are extensively responsible for the transmission of pathogens. Novel strategies using Wolbachia could transform that scenario, since these bacteria manipulate mosquito reproduction, and can confer a pathogen transmission-blocking phenotype in culicids. Here, we screened the Wolbachia surface protein region by PCR in eight Cuban mosquito species. We confirmed the natural infections by sequencing and assessed the phylogenetic relationships among the Wolbachia strains detected. We identified four Wolbachia hosts: Aedes albopictus, Culex quinquefasciatus, Mansonia titillans, and Aedes mediovittatus (first report worldwide). Knowledge of Wolbachia strains and their natural hosts is essential for future operationalization of this vector control strategy in Cuba.

Characterization of Insecticide Resistance in Aedes aegypti from the Zoological Garden of Havana, Cuba.

Chemical control of Aedes aegypti continues to be an indispensable alternative to preventing dengue, Zika, and chikungunya outbreaks. The Havana Zoological Garden requires constant vigilance because its special characteristics help in the spread of the causal agents of diseases transmitted by mosquitoes, which put the health of visitors at risk. The goals of this study were to determine the level of susceptibility and insecticide resistance mechanisms in the Ae. aegypti population. Temephos susceptibility in larvae was evaluated with bioassays using the World Health Organization's methodology, and susceptibility of adult mosquitoes was determined by the impregnated bottle bioassay, recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Resistance mechanisms were determined with biochemical assays. Mosquito larvae from the Havana Zoo were found resistant to temephos, which was associated with the activity of the enzymes α- and ß-esterases and mixed function oxidases but not glutathione-S-transferase. Adult mosquitoes were susceptible to pyrethroid (lambda-cyhalothrin, deltamethrin, and cypermethrin), organophosphate (chlorpyrifos), and carbamate (bendiocarb). Temephos resistance detected in the mosquito population from the Havana Zoo is an alert for the Vector Control Program, which must take measures to manage their resistance, relying on the surveillance carried out by Cuba's medical entomology laboratories.