Progress in probing the mosquito's sens...( about 350 different aromatic compounds...)

However, recent data from researchers in the Netherlands suggests that mosquitoes use a blend of many odorants in targeting prey. "This is a very complex system," Zwiebel observes.

The Nature paper reports another important advance. The researchers were able to get a mosquito olfactory gene to work in Drosophila, the fruit fly that has become the "white lab rat" of genetic research. This provides the researchers with a wealth of tools they can use to explore the nature of the mosquito's olfactory system at the genetic and molecular level.

The researchers created fruit flies with Anopheles' olfactory genes and then tested their sensitivity to different compounds found in human sweat. They identified one particular compound, 4-methylphenol, strongly activated an odorant receptor that is expressed in female mosquitoes but not in males. Previous studies had shown that the production of this protein is suppressed in female mosquitoes immediately following a blood meal when they are no longer responsive to human odors. The new finding strengthens the argument that female Anopheles use 4-methylphenol to seek out hosts.

The fact that the mosquito gene works properly in the fruit fly has another significant ramification. It means that the fundamental nature of the olfactory system in other insects must be extremely similar to that of the mosquito. "As a result, our research should have a direct bearing not only on the mosquito, but also on other insects that carry disease and act as agricultural pests," Zwiebel says.

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Contact: David F. Salisbury
david.salisbury@vanderbilt.edu
615-343-6803
Vanderbilt University
15-Jan-2004