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Anopheles Mosquitoes

Diagram of Adult Female Mosquito

Larger Picture

Malaria is transmitted among humans by female mosquitoes of the genusAnopheles. Female

mosquitoes take blood meals to carry out egg production, and such blood meals are the link
between the human and the mosquito hosts in the parasite life cycle. The successful development
of the malaria parasite in the mosquito (from the "gametocyte" stage to the "sporozoite" stage)
depends on several factors. The most important is ambient temperature and humidity (higher
temperatures accelerate the parasite growth in the mosquito) and whether the Anopheles survives
long enough to allow the parasite to complete its cycle in the mosquito host ("sporogonic" or
"extrinsic" cycle, duration 10 to 18 days). Differently from the human host, the mosquito host does
not suffer noticeably from the presence of the parasites.

General Information

Map of the world showing the distribution of predominant malaria vectors

Larger Picture

There are approximately 3,500 species of mosquitoes grouped into 41 genera. Human malaria is
transmitted only by females of the genus Anopheles. Of the approximately 430Anopheles species,
only 30-40 transmit malaria (i.e., are "vectors") in nature.

Geographic Distribution
Anophelines are found worldwide except Antarctica. Malaria is transmitted by
different Anopheles species, depending on the region and the environment.
Anophelines that can transmit malaria are found not only in malaria-endemic areas, but also in
areas where malaria has been eliminated. The latter areas are thus constantly at risk of reintroduction of the disease.

Anopheles freeborni mosquito pumping blood

Larger Picture

Sequential images of the mosquito taking its blood meal

Life Stages
Like all mosquitoes, anophelines go through four stages in their life cycle: egg, larva, pupa, and
adult. The first three stages are aquatic and last 5-14 days, depending on the species and the
ambient temperature. The adult stage is when the female Anopheles mosquito acts as malaria
vector. The adult females can live up to a month (or more in captivity) but most probably do not
live more than 1-2 weeks in nature.

Top: Anopheles Egg; note the lateral floats.

Bottom: Anopheles eggs are laid singly.

Eggs

Adult females lay 50-200 eggs per oviposition. Eggs are laid singly directly on water and are
unique in having floats on either side. Eggs are not resistant to drying and hatch within 2-3 days,
although hatching may take up to 2-3 weeks in colder climates.

Larvae
Mosquito larvae have a well-developed head with mouth brushes used for feeding, a large thorax,
and a segmented abdomen. They have no legs. In contrast to other mosquitoes, Anopheles larvae
lack a respiratory siphon and for this reason position themselves so that their body is parallel to
the surface of the water.
Larvae breathe through spiracles located on the 8th abdominal segment and therefore must come
to the surface frequently.

Anopheles Larva. Note the position, parallel to the water surface.

The larvae spend most of their time feeding on algae, bacteria, and other microorganisms in the
surface microlayer. They dive below the surface only when disturbed. Larvae swim either by jerky
movements of the entire body or through propulsion with the mouth brushes.
Larvae develop through 4 stages, or instars, after which they metamorphose into pupae. At the
end of each instar, the larvae molt, shedding their exoskeleton, or skin, to allow for further growth.

Larvae of Anopheles gambiae, the major malaria vector in Africa, can breed in diverse habitats. Three habitats
are shown from left to right: tire tracks, rice fields, and irrigation water.

The larvae occur in a wide range of habitats but most species prefer clean, unpolluted water.
Larvae of Anopheles mosquitoes have been found in fresh- or salt-water marshes, mangrove
swamps, rice fields, grassy ditches, the edges of streams and rivers, and small, temporary rain
pools. Many species prefer habitats with vegetation. Others prefer habitats that have none. Some

breed in open, sun-lit pools while others are found only in shaded breeding sites in forests. A few
species breed in tree holes or the leaf axils of some plants.

Anopheles Pupa

Pupae
The pupa is comma-shaped when viewed from the side. The head and thorax are merged into a
cephalothorax with the abdomen curving around underneath. As with the larvae, pupae must come
to the surface frequently to breathe, which they do through a pair of respiratory trumpets on the
cephalothorax. After a few days as a pupa, the dorsal surface of the cephalothorax splits and the
adult mosquito emerges.
The duration from egg to adult varies considerably among species and is strongly influenced by
ambient temperature. Mosquitoes can develop from egg to adult in as little as 5 days but usually
take 10-14 days in tropical conditions.

Anopheles Adults. Note (bottom row) the typical resting position.

Adults
Like all mosquitoes, adult anophelines have slender bodies with 3 sections: head, thorax and
abdomen.
The head is specialized for acquiring sensory information and for feeding. The head contains the
eyes and a pair of long, many-segmented antennae. The antennae are important for detecting

host odors as well as odors of breeding sites where females lay eggs. The head also has an
elongate, forward-projecting proboscis used for feeding, and two sensory palps.
The thorax is specialized for locomotion. Three pairs of legs and a pair of wings are attached to the
thorax.
The abdomen is specialized for food digestion and egg development. This segmented body part
expands considerably when a female takes a blood meal. The blood is digested over time serving
as a source of protein for the production of eggs, which gradually fill the abdomen.
Anopheles mosquitoes can be distinguished from other mosquitoes by the palps, which are as long
as the proboscis, and by the presence of discrete blocks of black and white scales on the wings.
Adult Anopheles can also be identified by their typical resting position: males and females rest with
their abdomens sticking up in the air rather than parallel to the surface on which they are resting.
Adult mosquitoes usually mate within a few days after emerging from the pupal stage. In most
species, the males form large swarms, usually around dusk, and the females fly into the swarms to
mate.

Female Anopheles dirusfeeding

Males live for about a week, feeding on nectar and other sources of sugar. Females will also feed
on sugar sources for energy but usually require a blood meal for the development of eggs. After
obtaining a full blood meal, the female will rest for a few days while the blood is digested and eggs
are developed. This process depends on the temperature but usually takes 2-3 days in tropical
conditions. Once the eggs are fully developed, the female lays them and resumes host seeking.
The cycle repeats itself until the female dies. Females can survive up to a month (or longer in
captivity) but most probably do not live longer than 1-2 weeks in nature. Their chances of survival
depend on temperature and humidity, but also their ability to successfully obtain a blood meal
while avoiding host defenses.

Factors Involved in Malaria Transmission and Malaria Control

Understanding the biology and behavior of Anopheles mosquitoes can help understand how
malaria is transmitted and can aid in designing appropriate control strategies. Factors that affect a
mosquito's ability to transmit malaria include its innate susceptibility to Plasmodium, its host
choice, and its longevity. Factors that should be taken into consideration when designing a control
program include the susceptibility of malaria vectors to insecticides and the preferred feeding and
resting location of adult mosquitoes.
More on: How to Reduce Malaria's Impact

Preferred Sources for Blood Meals

One important behavioral factor is the degree to which an Anopheles species prefers to feed on
humans (anthropophily) or animals such as cattle (zoophily). Anthrophilic Anopheles are more
likely to transmit the malaria parasites from one person to another. Most Anopheles mosquitoes
are not exclusively anthropophilic or zoophilic. However, the primary malaria vectors in Africa, An.
gambiaeand An. funestus, are strongly anthropophilic and, consequently, are two of the most
efficient malaria vectors in the world.

Life Span
Once ingested by a mosquito, malaria parasites must undergo development within the mosquito
before they are infectious to humans. The time required for development in the mosquito (the
extrinsic incubation period) ranges from 10 to 21 days, depending on the parasite species and the
temperature. If a mosquito does not survive longer than the extrinsic incubation period, then she
will not be able to transmit any malaria parasites.
It is not possible to measure directly the life span of mosquitoes in nature. But indirect estimates
of daily survivorship have been made for several Anopheles species. Estimates of daily survivorship
ofAn. gambiae in Tanzania ranged from 0.77 to 0.84 meaning that at the end of one day between
77% and 84% will have survived. (Charlwood et al., 1997, Survival And Infection Probabilities of
Anthropophagic Anophelines From An Area of High Prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum in
Humans, Bulletin of Entomological Research, 87, 445-453).
Assuming this is constant through the adult life of a mosquito, less than 10% of female An.
gambiaewould survive longer than a 14-day extrinsic incubation period. If daily survivorship
increased to 0.9, over 20% of mosquitoes would survive longer than a 14-day extrinsic incubation
period. Control measures that rely on insecticides (e.g., indoor residual spraying) may actually
impact malaria transmission more through their effect on adult longevity than through their effect
on the population of adult mosquitoes.

Patterns of Feeding and Resting

Most Anopheles mosquitoes are crepuscular (active at dusk or dawn) or nocturnal (active at night).
Some Anopheles mosquitoes feed indoors (endophagic) while others feed outdoors (exophagic).
After blood feeding, some Anopheles mosquitoes prefer to rest indoors (endophilic) while others
prefer to rest outdoors (exophilic). Biting by nocturnal, endophagic Anopheles mosquitoes can be
markedly reduced through the use of insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs) or through improved
housing construction to prevent mosquito entry (e.g., window screens). Endophilic mosquitoes are
readily controlled by indoor spraying of residual insecticides. In contrast, exophagic/exophilic
vectors are best controlled through source reduction (destruction of the breeding sites).

Insecticide Resistance
Insecticide-based control measures (e.g., indoor spraying with insecticides, ITNs) are the principal
way to kill mosquitoes that bite indoors. However, after prolonged exposure to an insecticide over
several generations, mosquitoes, like other insects, may develop resistance, a capacity to survive
contact with an insecticide. Since mosquitoes can have many generations per year, high levels of
resistance can arise very quickly. Resistance of mosquitoes to some insecticides has been
documented just within a few years after the insecticides were introduced. There are over 125
mosquito species with documented resistance to one or more insecticides. The development of

resistance to insecticides used for indoor residual spraying was a major impediment during the
Global Malaria Eradication Campaign. Judicious use of insecticides for mosquito control can limit
the development and spread of resistance. However, use of insecticides in agriculture has often
been implicated as contributing to resistance in mosquito populations. It is possible to detect
developing resistance in mosquitoes and control programs are well advised to conduct surveillance
for this potential problem.

Related Sources:
Insecticide Resistance and Vector Control. Brogdon WG, McAllister JC (1998) Emerging
Infectious Diseases 4:605-613

Susceptibility/Refractoriness
Some Anopheles species are poor vectors of malaria, as the parasites do not develop well (or at
all) within them. There is also variation within species. In the laboratory, it has been possible to
select for strains of An. gambiae that are refractory to infection by malaria parasites. These
refractory strains have an immune response that encapsulates and kills the parasites after they
have invaded the mosquito's stomach wall. Scientists are studying the genetic mechanism for this
response. It is hoped that some day, genetically modified mosquitoes that are refractory to malaria
can replace wild mosquitoes, thereby limiting or eliminating malaria transmission.
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Page last reviewed: November 9, 2012 (archived document)

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Anopheles gambiae
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Anopheles gambiae

Scientific classification
Kingdom:

Animalia

Phylum:

Arthropoda

Class:

Insecta

Order:

Diptera

Family:

Culicidae

Subfamily:

Anophelinae

Genus:

Anopheles

Species:

A. gambiae
Binomial name

Anopheles gambiae
Giles 1902[1]

The tube-like heart (green) extends along the body, interlinked with the diamond-shaped wing
muscles (also green) and surrounded by pericardial cells (red). Blue depicts cell nuclei.

Anopheles gambiae is a complex of at least seven morphologically indistinguishable species

of mosquitoes in the genus Anopheles. This complex was recognised in the 1960s and includes
the most important vectors of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa particularly of the most dangerous
malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum.[2] It is one of the most efficient malaria vectors known.
This species complex consists of:[3]

Anopheles arabiensis

Anopheles bwambae

Anopheles merus

Anopheles melas

Anopheles quadriannulatus

Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto

Despite being morphologically indistinguishable, individual species of Anopheles

gambiae complex exhibit different behavioural traits. For example, the Anopheles
quadriannulatus is generally considered to be zoophilic (taking its blood meal from animals),
whereas Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto is generally anthropophilic (taking its blood meal from
humans). Identification to the individual species level using the molecular methods of Scott et
al. (1993)[4] can have important implications in subsequent control measures.
Recently a new cryptic subgroup - the Goundry subgroup- of Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto
has been described.[5]
Contents
[hide]

1 Anopheles gambiae in the strict sense

2 Historical note

3 References

4 External links

Anopheles gambiae in the strict sense[edit]

An. gambiae s.s. has been discovered to be currently in a state of diverging into two different
species the Mopti (M) and Savannah (S) strains though as of 2007, the two strains are still
considered to be a single species. The An. gambiae s.s. genome has been sequenced three
times, once for the M strain, once for the S strain, and once for a hybrid strain. [6][7] Currently, ~90
miRNA have been predicted in the literature (38 miRNA officially listed in miRBase) for An.
gambiae s.s. based upon conserved sequences to miRNA found in Drosophila.
The mechanism of species recognition appears to be sounds emitted by the wings and identified
by Johnston's organ.[8]

Historical note[edit]
An. gambiense invaded northeastern Brazil in 1930, which led to a malaria epidemic in
1938/1939.[9] The Brazilian government assisted by the Rockefeller Foundation in a programme
spearheaded by Fred Soper eradicated these mosquitoes from this area. This effort was
modeled on the earlier success in eradication of Aedes aegypti as part of the yellow fever control
program. The exact species involved in this epidemic has been identified as An. arabiensis.[10]

References[edit]
1.

Jump up^ Giles, G.M. (1902). A handbook of the gnats or

mosquitoes giving the anatomy and life history of the Culicidae
together with descriptions of all species noticed up to the present
date. John Bale, Sons & Danielsson, Limited. London, United
Kingdom. 530pp

2.

Jump up^ "Anopheles gambiae complex". Walter Reed Army

Institute of Research.

3.

Jump up^ Besansky NJ, Powell JR, Caccone A, Hamm DM, Scott
JA, Collins FH (July 1994)."Molecular phylogeny of the Anopheles
gambiae complex suggests genetic introgression between
principal malaria vectors". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 91 (15):
68858.doi:10.1073/pnas.91.15.6885. PMC 44302. PMID 804171
4.
Wilkins EE, Howell PI, Benedict MQ (2006). "IMP PCR primers
detect single nucleotide polymorphisms for Anopheles
gambiae species identification, Mopti and Savanna rDNA types,
and resistance to dieldrin in Anopheles arabiensis". Malar. J. 5 (1):
125.doi:10.1186/1475-2875-5-125. PMC 1769388. PMID 1717799
3.

4.

Jump up^ C. Fanello, F. Santolamazza & A. Della Torre

(2002). "Simultaneous identification of species and molecular
forms of the Anopheles gambiae complex by PCR-RFLP". Medical
and Veterinary Entomology 16 (4): 4614. doi:10.1046/j.13652915.2002.00393.x.PMID 12510902.

5.

Jump up^ Yakob L (2011) Epidemiological consequences of a

newly discovered cryptic subgroup ofAnopheles gambiae.Biol Lett

6.

Jump up^ "Anopheles gambiae: First genome of a vector for a

parasitic disease". Genoscope.

7.

Jump up^ Lawniczak, M. K. et al. (Oct 22, 2010). "Widespread

divergence between incipient Anopheles gambiae species
revealed by whole genome sequences.". Science 330(6003): 512
4. doi:10.1126/science.1195755. PMC 3674514. PMID 20966253.

8.

Jump up^ Pennetier C, Warren B, Dabir KR, Russell IJ, Gibson

G (2009) "Singing on the wing" as a mechanism for species
recognition in the malarial mosquito Anopheles gambiae. Curr.
Biol.

9.

Jump up^ Killeen GF (October 2003). "Following in Soper's

footsteps: northeast Brazil 63 years after eradication of Anopheles
gambiae". Lancet Infect Dis 3 (10): 6636.doi:10.1016/S14733099(03)00776-X. PMID 14522266.

10. Jump up^ Parmakelis A, Russello MA, Caccone A et al. (January

2008). "Historical analysis of a near disaster: Anopheles
gambiae in Brazil". Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg. 78 (1): 176
8.PMID 18187802.

External links[edit]

"Anopheles gambiae". VectorBase.

"Anopheles gambiae". MetaPathogen.

DiArk

Categories:

Anopheles

Insect vectors of human pathogens

Insects with sequenced genomes

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Anopheles
Taxonomic level: Genus
Displaying 1 - 10 of 24

Anopheles coluzzii
Anopheles coluzzii, formerly known as Anopheles gambiae M molecular form, was defined as a separate species
in 2013 (Coetzee et al.). An. coluzzii belongs to the Anopheles gambiae species complex, which consists of at
least seven species.

Anopheles gambiae
Anopheles gambiae senso stricto is the primary mosquito vector responsible for the transmission of malaria in
most of sub-Saharan Africa. It is a member of a species complex that includes at least seven morphologically
indistinguishable species in the Series Pyretophorus in the Anophelessubgenus Cellia. Anopheles gambiae feeds
preferentially on humans and is one of the most efficient malaria vectors known.

Anopheles stephensi
Anopheles stephensi is distributed in southern Asia, from the Indian subcontinent with a westward extension
through Iran and Iraq into the Middle East and Arabian Peninsula to the east in Bangladesh, southern China,
Myanmar and Thailand. Anopheles stephensi is a main vector of human malaria in India and the Persian Gulf.

Anopheles albimanus
Anopheles albimanus it is one of the main vectors of malaria in southern Mxico, Central America, northern
South America and the Caribbean. On the Atlantic coast is found from Texas to Venezuela, on most of the
Caribbean islands and on the Pacific coast, from Mexico to northern Peru.

Anopheles arabiensis

Anopheles arabiensis belongs to the A. gambiae species complex, and is one of the most important vectors of
malaria in in sub-Saharan Africa and surrounding islands.

Anopheles atroparvus
Anopheles atroparvus belongs to the A. maculipennis species complex.Anopheles atroparvus is distributed in
northern and western Europe, Spain, Portugal and northern Italy and was one of the main malaria vectors in
Europe.

Anopheles christyi
Anopheles christyi is not a malaria vector but is a species closely related to the Anopheles gambiae complex.

Anopheles culicifacies A
Anopheles culicifacies is a complex of five species found in Cambodia, China, Ethiopia, Nepal, Sri Lanka,
Thailand, Vietnam, India, Iran and Pakistan, and Anopheles culicifacies A is a malaria vector found in these last
three countries.

Anopheles darlingi
Anopheles darlingi is one of the most important vectors of malaria in the Neotropics (Mexico, Central and South
America), with populations from southern Mexico to Argentina.

Anopheles dirus A
The Anopheles dirus complex includes non-vector and vector species of human malaria. Anopheles
dirus (formerly A. dirus species A) is distributed in eastern Asia (Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam,
and Hainan Island in China) and is consider a main vector.