Mosquitoes transmit disease-causing pathogens. Plasmodium parasites alone, the causative agents of malaria, kill millions of people each year. For natural transmission of Plasmodium to the vertebrate host, the parasite undergoes a series of obligatory developmental and propagative processes in a mosquito vector. Of interest in the current application is the biology of the sporogonic stages of Plasmodium in the mosquito hemocoel. Preliminary experiments have identified a family of proteins in the mosquito Anopheles gambiae with homology to an Aedes aegypti putative salivary gland sporozite receptor. Here, we will characterize the temporal and spatial expression of these An. gambiae proteins, and determine their involvement in salivary gland invasion by sporozoites. Furthermore, salivary gland invasion is a very inefficient process. Many sporozoites are unable to invade and rapidly die in the hemocoel. Here, we will also attempt to characterize the endogenous mechanisms used by mosquitoes to kill sporozoites. Understanding the mechanisms used by parasites to complete their life cycle inside the vector, and the mechanisms used by the vector to kill parasites, may lead to novel transmission control strategies. ? ?

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Type
Postdoctoral Individual National Research Service Award (F32)
Project #
1F32AI065075-01A1
Application #
7054352
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZRG1-F13 (20))
Program Officer
Costero, Adriana
Project Start
2006-05-03
Project End
2009-05-02
Budget Start
2006-05-03
Budget End
2007-05-02
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2006
Total Cost
$48,796
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Department
Microbiology/Immun/Virology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
555917996
City
Minneapolis
State
MN
Country
United States
Zip Code
55455
Xu, Jiannong; Hillyer, Julian F; Coulibaly, Boubacar et al. (2013) Wild Anopheles funestus mosquito genotypes are permissive for infection with the rodent malaria parasite, Plasmodium berghei. PLoS One 8:e61181
Hillyer, Julian F; Barreau, Catherine; Vernick, Kenneth D (2007) Efficiency of salivary gland invasion by malaria sporozoites is controlled by rapid sporozoite destruction in the mosquito haemocoel. Int J Parasitol 37:673-81