Field Relevant Variation in Ambient Temperature Modifies Density-Dependent Establishment of Plasmodium falciparum Gametocytes in Mosquitoes.

Ashutosh K Pathak,Justine C Shiau,Matthew B Thomas,Courtney C Murdock

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2019.02651

Abstract

The relationship between Plasmodium falciparum gametocyte density and infections in mosquitoes is central to understanding the rates of transmission with important implications for control. Here, we determined whether field relevant variation in environmental temperature could also modulate this relationship. Anopheles stephensi were challenged with three densities of P. falciparum gametocytes spanning a ~10-fold gradient, and housed under diurnal/daily temperature range (“DTR”) of 9°C (+5°C and −4°C) around means of 20, 24, and 28°C. Vector competence was quantified as the proportion of mosquitoes infected with oocysts in the midguts (oocyst rates) or infectious with sporozoites in the salivary glands (sporozoite rates) at peak periods of infection for each temperature to account for the differences in development rates. In addition, oocyst intensities were also recorded from infected midguts and the overall study replicated across three separate parasite cultures and mosquito cohorts. While vector competence was similar at 20 DTR 9°C and 24 DTR 9°C, oocyst and sporozoite rates were also comparable, with evidence, surprisingly, for higher vector competence in mosquitoes challenged with intermediate gametocyte densities. For the same gametocyte densities however, severe reductions in the sporozoite rates was accompanied by a significant decline in overall vector competence at 28 DTR 9°C, with gametocyte density per se showing a positive and linear effect at this temperature. Unlike vector competence, oocyst intensities decreased with increasing temperatures with a predominantly positive and linear association with gametocyte density, especially at 28 DTR 9°C. Oocyst intensities across individual infected midguts suggested temperature-specific differences in mosquito susceptibility/resistance: at 20 DTR 9°C and 24 DTR 9°C, dispersion (aggregation) increased in a density-dependent manner but not at 28 DTR 9°C where the distributions were consistently random. Limitations notwithstanding, our results suggest that variation in temperature could modify seasonal dynamics of infectious reservoirs with implications for the design and deployment of transmission-blocking vaccines/drugs.

Highlights

Targeting transmission of Plasmodium falciparum gametocytes to their mosquito vectors is more pertinent than ever in light of the recent resurgence in disease incidence in sub-Saharan Africa and for future efforts toward eliminating malaria (World Health Organization., 2018)
A non-linear quadratic (“humpshaped”) relationship was noted between gametocyte density and overall vector competence (Log-Odds = −3.72, se = 1.45, z-value = −2.566, p = 0.01), likely driven by the two cooler temperatures where oocyst rates were highest at intermediate gametocyte densities (Figure 3, Table 1, and Supplementary Table 1)
Pairwise comparisons of marginal means estimated by the models suggested clear differences between gametocyte density and oocyst rates at 28 DTR 9◦C, but not at the two cooler temperatures where the proportion of mosquitoes infected with oocysts was marginally higher at the intermediate relative to the lowest gametocyte densities (Supplementary Table 2)

Summary

Introduction

Targeting transmission of Plasmodium falciparum gametocytes to their mosquito vectors is more pertinent than ever in light of the recent resurgence in disease incidence in sub-Saharan Africa and for future efforts toward eliminating malaria (World Health Organization., 2018). An improved understanding of the relationship between gametocyte density in the human host and rates of transmission to vectors will benefit efforts to target individuals/sub-groups with dis-proportionately higher contribution to transmission (the “infectious reservoir”) (Stone et al, 2015). It will assist in the development and efficacy assessment of transmission-reducing interventions (Rabinovich et al, 2017). It is generally assumed that hosts with higher gametocyte density will infect more mosquitoes on average, which in turn shapes recommendations for interventions

Methods

Results

Conclusion