Development of a population suppression strain of the human malaria vector mosquito, Anopheles stephensi.

BACKGROUND: Transgenic mosquito strains are being developed to contribute to the control of dengue and malaria transmission. One approach uses genetic manipulation to confer conditional, female-specific dominant lethality phenotypes. Engineering of a female-specific flightless phenotype provides a sexing mechanism essential for male-only mosquito, release approaches that result in population suppression of target vector species. METHODS: An approach that uses a female-specific gene promoter and antibiotic-repressible lethal factor to produce a sex-specific flightless phenotype was adapted to the human malaria vector, Anopheles stephensi. Transposon- and site-specific recombination-mediated technologies were used to generate a number of transgenic An. stephensi lines that when combined through mating produced the phenotype of flight-inhibited females and flight-capable males. RESULTS: The data shown here demonstrate the successful engineering of a female-specific flightless phenotype in a malaria vector. The flightless phenotype was repressible by the addition of tetracycline to the larval diet. This conditional phenotype allows the rearing of the strains under routine laboratory conditions. The minimal level of tetracycline that rescues the flightless phenotype is higher than that found as an environmental contaminant in circumstances where there is intensive use of antibiotics. CONCLUSIONS: These studies support the further development of flightless female technology for applications in malaria control programmes that target the vectors.

Spurious and functional correlates of the isotopic composition of a generalist across a tropical rainforest landscape.

BACKGROUND: The isotopic composition of generalist consumers may be expected to vary in space as a consequence of spatial heterogeneity in isotope ratios, the abundance of resources, and competition. We aim to account for the spatial variation in the carbon and nitrogen isotopic composition of a generalized predatory species across a 500 ha. tropical rain forest landscape. We test competing models to account for relative influence of resources and competitors to the carbon and nitrogen isotopic enrichment of gypsy ants (Aphaenogaster araneoides), taking into account site-specific differences in baseline isotope ratios. RESULTS: We found that 75% of the variance in the fraction of 15N in the tissue of A. araneoides was accounted by one environmental parameter, the concentration of soil phosphorus. After taking into account landscape-scale variation in baseline resources, the most parsimonious model indicated that colony growth and leaf litter biomass accounted for nearly all of the variance in the delta15N discrimination factor, whereas the delta13C discrimination factor was most parsimoniously associated with colony size and the rate of leaf litter decomposition. There was no indication that competitor density or diversity accounted for spatial differences in the isotopic composition of gypsy ants. CONCLUSION: Across a 500 ha. landscape, soil phosphorus accounted for spatial variation in baseline nitrogen isotope ratios. The delta15N discrimination factor of a higher order consumer in this food web was structured by bottom-up influences - the quantity and decomposition rate of leaf litter. Stable isotope studies on the trophic biology of consumers may benefit from explicit spatial design to account for edaphic properties that alter the baseline at fine spatial grains.