Blood Meal Sources of Aedes aegypti in Benin | IJB 2023

Tchibozo Carine,  Yadouleton Anges,  Dramane Gado, Hounkanrin Gildas, Adewumi Praise, and Joest Hanna, from the institute of Benin. Wrote a research article about, Blood Meal Sources of Aedes aegypti in Benin entitled, Origin of the blood meal of the Aedes aegypti mosquito in five localities in Benin. This research paper published by the International Journal of Biosciences | IJB. an open access scholarly research journal on Biosciences. under the affiliation of the International Network For Natural Sciences| INNSpub. an open access multidisciplinary research journal publisher.

Abstract

With the aim of learning about the multiple origins of blood meal sources in Aedes aegypti in Benin, a study was conducted in five localities from the south to the north of the country (Cotonou, Porto-Novo, Calavi, Dassa and kandi) from June 2020 to October 2021 to capture adult populations of A. aegypti. To achieve this objective, BG-Sentinel and Aedes Gravid traps were set daily inside and outside four randomly selected concessions in each of the above-mentioned sites, three times a week for the duration of the study. Populations of blood-feeding A. aegypti mosquitoes were identified using the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technique. PCR results were confirmed by sequencing to identify the origin of the blood meal. Out of a total of 3,749 mosquitoes collected, Aedes aegypti (79.22%) and Culex quinquefaciatus (20.08%) were the two main species caught. With a total of 2,970 A. aegypti populations, 2,684 (71.7%) were non-blood-fed, compared with 286 (7.6%) blood-fed. For Culex quinquefasciatus, out of 753 populations caught, 733 (19.5%) were non-gorged versus 20 (0.5%) blood-fed. Research into the origin of the blood meal using the PCR technique showed that out of 1019 mosquitoes analyzed, 987 (96.8%) had taken their blood meal from humans. This result was confirmed by sequencing analysis of PCR-positive pools. The anthropophagous nature of A. aegypti confirmed by the sequencing results during this study remains an important clue in the implementation of arbovirus control strategies, particularly against A. aegypti mosquitoes in Benin. 

Introduction

According to the World Health Organization in 2016, several vector-borne diseases are caused by arthropods and the most important are found in subSaharan Africa. The main mosquito general responsible for these diseases are: Anopheles, Aedes and Culex.

Aedes aegypti is the main vector of arboviruses such as dengue, zika, yellow fever and chikungunya. This highly hematophagous domestic mosquito is found in human dwellings and, is present in jars, abandoned cans, from northern to southern Benin throughout the year with risks of spreading dengue fever (Yadouleton et al., 2018). The recent and rapid spread of this mosquito to new geographical areas, including rural environments, means that it is considered a public health problem (WHO, 2016), Moreover, these blood-requiring mosquitoes most often develop a preference for the most available and stable source of blood (Roiberg and Gordon et al., 2005; O'Meara et al., 2020). The preference of mosquito vectors for a specific host for their blood meal undoubtedly affects the mosquitoes' ability to transmit pathogens.

Over the past decade, several cases of arboviruses, notably dengue, have been reported in sub-Saharan Africa, notably in Gabon (Abe et al., 2020), Côte d'Ivoire (Moi et al., 2010), Senegal (Faye et al., 2014) and Burkina-Faso (Ouédraogo et al., 2019), with over 1,500 cases recorded. The preference of mosquito vectors for a specific host for their blood meal surely affects the mosquitoes' ability to transmit pathogens. Consequently, understanding mosquito blood feeding patterns in different environments can help determine which host species can influence the maintenance and epidemic transmission of viruses. With this in mind, this study was carried out in 5 cities in Benin, in order to determine the origin of the blood meal in Aedes aegypti populations.

Article source : Origin of the blood meal of the Aedes aegypti mosquito in five localities in Benin