Aquatic Exposure to Abscisic Acid Transstadially Enhances Anopheles stephensi Resistance to Malaria Parasite Infection.

Dean M Taylor,Shirley Luckhart,Reagan S Haney

doi:10.3390/genes11121393

Abstract

The ancient stress signaling molecule abscisic acid (ABA) is ubiquitous in animals and plants but is perhaps most well-known from its early discovery as a plant hormone. ABA can be released into water by plants and is found in nectar, but is also present in mammalian blood, three key contexts for mosquito biology. We previously established that addition of ABA to Anopheles stephensi larval rearing water altered immature development and life history traits of females derived from treated larvae, while addition of ABA to an infected bloodmeal increased resistance of adult female A. stephensi to human malaria parasite infection. Here we sought to determine whether larval treatment with ABA could similarly impact resistance to parasite infection in females derived from treated larvae and, if so, whether resistance could be extended to another parasite species. We examined nutrient levels and gene expression to demonstrate that ABA can transstadially alter resistance to a rodent malaria parasite with hallmarks of previously observed mechanisms of resistance following provision of ABA in blood to A. stephensi.

Highlights

Malaria is a vector-borne disease caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium that are transmitted by Anopheles spp. mosquitoes
To determine the potential significance of this exposure, we showed that the addition of abscisic acid (ABA) to rearing water at concentrations as low as 1 μM significantly accelerated A. stephensi larval development, increased pupal mortality, decreased lifespan and decreased fecundity through three gonotrophic cycles in adult female mosquitoes derived from treated larvae relative to controls [20]
On malaria parasite development and mosquito immunity noted above, we sought to examine the success of P. y. yoelii 17XNL development in A. stephensi derived from ABA-treated and control larvae

Summary

Introduction

Malaria is a vector-borne disease caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium that are transmitted by Anopheles spp. mosquitoes. In 2016, the Indian malaria mosquito Anopheles stephensi was first recorded in Ethiopia [2], after earlier discovery in Djibouti [3], and has since become established in the region. The establishment of an urban malaria vector in East Africa is a serious and urgent health threat to the region and the continent [5]. The microbiota in adult mosquito midguts is influenced by bacteria present in the larval environment [6,7,8,9]. The midgut microbiota of adult Aedes and Anopheles spp

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Conclusion