Genetic relationships among populations of Aedes aegypti in Taiwan by using phenotypic and random amplified DNA-polymerase chain reaction markers.

An analysis of gene flow was conducted among collections of Aedes aegypti from 7 localities along the southwestern and southeastern coasts in Taiwan. Markers include 7 types of scaling patterns and 23 random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) loci amplified by the polymerase chain reaction. Differences in scaling pattern and in the frequencies of RAPD markers were detected among populations and cluster analyses revealed 2 main groups on each side of the Central Mountain Range. Regression analysis of geographic distances and pairwise F(ST) values estimated from RAPD markers showed that southwestern populations are isolated by distance and that populations within 15 km are panmictic. This is a shorter distance than detected among collections of Ae. aegypti in similar published studies from Mexico and Argentina.