Clock genes and environmental cues coordinate Anopheles pheromone synthesis, swarming, and mating
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Date
2021-01-22
Journal Title
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Publisher
Science
Abstract
Anopheles mating is initiated by the swarming of males at dusk followed by females flying into the
swarm. Here, we show that mosquito swarming and mating are coordinately guided by clock genes, light,
and temperature. Transcriptome analysis shows up-regulation of the clock genes period (per) and
timeless (tim) in the head of field-caught swarming Anopheles coluzzii males. Knockdown of per and tim
expression affects Anopheles gambiae s.s. and Anopheles stephensi male mating in the laboratory,
and it reduces male An. coluzzii swarming and mating under semifield conditions. Light and temperature
affect mosquito mating, possibly by modulating per and/or tim expression. Moreover, the desaturase
gene desat1 is up-regulated and rhythmically expressed in the heads of swarming males and regulates
the production of cuticular hydrocarbons, including heptacosane, which stimulates mating activity
Description
Keywords
Anopheles, mating, Jingnan Liu, Chunlai Cui, Charles Nignan, Burkina Faso, Université Nazi Boni, CEA-ITECH_MTV, ACE: Bio-technological Innovation for the Elimination of Vector- Borne Diseases