Behavioural and ecological determinants of gene flow in African malaria mosquitoes.

Sponsor: NWO, The Netherlands.
IHRDC Investigators: HM Ferguson, H Mshinda & GF Killeen

Partner investigators and institutions: G Nwengulila; University of Dar es Salaam, BGJ Knols & W Takken, Wageningen University, The Netherlands & Food and Agriculture Organization/International Atomic Energy Agency Entomology Laboratory, Seibersdorf, Austria

Recent successful genetic transformation of mosquitoes has fuelled enthusiasm towards its potential application for disease control in the future. Spread of desired traits, such as refractoriness to Plasmodium infection, will depend on the reproductive fitness and manifestation of important life-history behaviours, such as dispersal and mating, by engineered specimens. Building on our experience with semi-field systems for elucidating ecological processes in Anopheles gambiae, we will address three crucial determinants of gene flow in malaria vector populations through distinct subprojects. These projects are i) Mating: Behavioural and chemo-ecological determinants of gene flow in An. gambiae populations, ii) Fitness: Reproductive success and competitive ability of wild type and laboratory-adapted strains of An. gambiae, and iii) Survival: Blood and sugar feeding as determinants of An. gambiae longevity. All these projects will include development and parameterization of bio-demographic and process-explicit models so that the likely success of genetic control strategies and alternative vector control methods can be assessed.