Abstract
BackgroundAedes albopictus is an invasive mosquito species of global medical concern as its distribution has recently expanded to Africa, the Americas and Europe. In the absence of prophylaxis protecting human populations from emerging arboviruses transmitted by this mosquito species, the most straightforward control measures rely on the suppression or manipulation of vector natural populations. A number of environmental-friendly methods using mass releases of sterilizing males are currently under development. However, these strategies are still lacking an efficient sexing method required for production of males at an industrial scale.ResultsWe present the first Genetic Sexing Strain (GSS) in Ae. albopictus, hereafter referred as Tikok, obtained by sex linkage of the rdl gene conferring dieldrin resistance. Hatch rate, larval survival and sex ratio were followed during twelve generations. The use of dieldrin at the third larval stage allowed selecting 98 % of males on average.ConclusionA good production rate of Tikok males makes this GSS suitable for any control method based on mass production of Ae. albopictus males. Despite limitations resulting from reduced egg hatch as well as the nature of the used insecticide, the construction of this GSS paves the way for industrial sex separation of Ae. albopictus.
Highlights
The recent Zika virus (ZIKV) epidemic has put vector borne diseases under the spotlight, and further confirmed the growing concern of emerging vector-borne pathogens [1]
The recurrent selection of insecticide resistance in vector natural populations [2], together with unwanted effects on non-target species have led to a ban of several synthetic pesticides and in turn stimulated the development of a handful of environmentally friendly methods
A dieldrin sensitive strain was constructed as follows: 20 cages were set with five females and one male in each cage
Summary
The recent Zika virus (ZIKV) epidemic has put vector borne diseases under the spotlight, and further confirmed the growing concern of emerging vector-borne pathogens [1] This epidemic shows similarities with chikungunya virus (CHIKV) emergence a decade ago: both CHIKV (alphavirus) and ZIKV (flavivirus) were initially known to cause outbreaks limited in space and time before expanding at a global scale. One way to prevent the spread of emerging arthropodborne pathogens is to limit their transmission through the control of their invertebrate vectors Such control methods, which have been so far mostly implemented through the use of synthetic pesticides, have proven efficient and notably allowed eradicating malaria from several territories worldwide following World War II. These strategies are still lacking an efficient sexing method required for production of males at an industrial scale
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