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ViewAttendees 2

Member Symposium

Blood Feeders: A New Frontier for Electropenetrography

The blood quest: How we used electropenetrography to examine mosquito feeding behavior on vertebrates

Sunday, November 5, 2023
3:20 PM – 3:35 PM ET
Location: Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, National Harbor 13
In-Person
Most human vector-borne pathogens are transmitted through blood feeding. Several factors are crucial for the success of these pathogens in the vertebrate host. One of these factors is arthropod saliva which contains pharmacologically active components that facilitate feeding. However, the vertebrate host’s response to the saliva also plays a role in how the arthropod feeds and whether the pathogen is able to establish infection. Thus, investigating vector-vertebrate interactions during the first minutes of contact may give us important clues to design improved disease control protocols. The alternating or direct current (AC-DC) electropenetrography (EPG) technology previously has been used to study vertebrate blood and plant feeding insects and the impact of pathogens transmitted by them during these feedings. In this study, we adapted an AC-DC EPG system to meet arthropod level 2 containment requirements while in use. This allowed for the use of EPG in an animal model, CD1 mice, and Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Resistance levels (Ri) of 107 Ω and 108 Ω were compared systematically to determine the appropriate machine settings. The optimal settings for EPG recordings on mice were determined to be 100 mV of AC current with Ri =107 Ω. EPG recordings conducted in containment settings agreed with previously reported waveforms for Ae. aegypti on human hands which confirms the method’s utility in future pathogen and arthropod containment settings.