Article

Utilization of human blood and sugar as nutrients by female Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae).

Department of Entomology, University of Maryland, College Park 20742, USA.
Journal of Medical Entomology (impact factor: 1.76). 01/1999; 36(1):13-7. pp.13-7
Source: PubMed

ABSTRACT We examined the utilization of sugar and human blood as nutrient sources for small and large female Aedes aegypti (L.) when they were fed blood 2 or 5 d after emergence. Laboratory-reared mosquitoes were fed human blood alone or sugar plus human blood and assayed at 4, 12, 24, and 48 h after the blood meal. Starved and well-fed mosquitoes were obtained by holding teneral females (< or = 1 d old) with 0, 5, 10, and 15% sucrose solutions ad libidum from emergence. Both small and large mosquitoes increased their glycogen and sugar levels significantly by feeding on blood only or on blood plus sugar when they imbibed a human blood meal on day 2 after emergence. Mosquitoes only fed blood on day 2 had the highest lipid levels of any treatment group. Both size classes and all feeding regimes failed to increase the total amount of glycogen, lipid, or sugar when they fed on blood 5 d after emergence. We conclude that there is an energetic advantage to Ae. aegypti when they feed on blood early in adult life (< or = day 2 after emergence).

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    Annals of the Entomological Society of America 01/2009; · 1.32 Impact Factor
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Keywords

15% sucrose solutions ad libidum
 
adult life
 
aegypti
 
blood 2
 
blood 5 d
 
blood meal
 
day 2
 
energetic advantage
 
glycogen
 
highest lipid levels
 
human blood
 
human blood meal
 
large female Aedes aegypti
 
nutrient sources
 
regimes
 
size classes
 
sugar levels
 
total amount
 
treatment group
 
utilization
 

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