Abstract
In mosquitoes, the discovery of the numerous interactions between components of the microbiota and the host immune response opens up the attractive possibility of the development of novel control strategies against mosquito borne diseases. We have focused our attention to Asaia, a symbiont of several mosquito vectors who has been proposed as one of the most potential tool for paratransgenic applications; although being extensively characterized, its interactions with the mosquito immune system has never been investigated. Here we report a study aimed at describing the interactions between Asaia and the immune system of two vectors of malaria, Anophelesstephensi and An. gambiae. The introduction of Asaia isolates induced the activation of the basal level of mosquito immunity and lower the development of malaria parasite in An. stephensi. These findings confirm and expand the potential of Asaia in mosquito borne diseases control, not only through paratransgenesis, but also as a natural effector for mosquito immune priming.
Highlights
Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease (MBD) caused by a parasite of the genus Plasmodium, responsible of about five hundred thousand deaths per year (World Health Organization, 2018)
Despite the different concentrations of bacteria provided in the diet, Asaia quickly reached a similar homeostasis within 3 days in An. stephensi, where this bacterial species has been described as one of the main component of its natural microbiota (Figure 2)
At the first time-point (1 day) sugar-fed and Asa4-fed mosquitoes showed similar Asaia density, compared to that detected in the cohort fed with Asa8 (p < 0.01): this early time-point is likely to reflect the quantity of Asaia administrated with the diets (Figure 2A)
Summary
Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease (MBD) caused by a parasite of the genus Plasmodium, responsible of about five hundred thousand deaths per year (World Health Organization, 2018). Considering the lack of an effective vaccine, chemical insecticides, applied either as Indoor Residual Spraying (IRSs) or Insecticide Treated Nets (ITNs), are the main prevention tools currently adopted (World Health Organization, 2014). These preventive methods are losing their effectiveness due to onset of resistance phenomena in vector populations. New strategies have been developed to tackle malaria and more generally MBD’s. Some studies have converged into the development of strategies known as Symbiotic Control (SC), using the symbiotic microorganisms colonizing vector hosts to combat the development of the parasite within them or to interfere with their competence and fitness (Ricci et al, 2012)
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