Center for Vector Biology and Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, 06511, CT, USA.
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, 06511, CT, USA.
Nat Commun. 2018 Oct 26;9(1):4464. doi: 10.1038/s41467-018-07014-2.
The mosquito gut microbiome plays an important role in mosquito development and fitness, providing a promising avenue for novel mosquito control strategies. Here we present a method for rearing axenic (bacteria free) Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, consisting of feeding sterilized larvae on agar plugs containing a high concentration of liver and yeast extract. This approach allows for the complete development to adulthood while maintaining sterility; however, axenic mosquito's exhibit delayed development time and stunted growth in comparison to their bacterially colonized cohorts. These data challenge the notion that live microorganisms are required for mosquito development, and suggest that the microbiota's main role is nutritional. Furthermore, we colonize axenic mosquitoes with simplified microbial communities ranging from a single bacterial species to a three-member community, demonstrating the ability to control the composition of the microbiota. This axenic system will allow the systematic manipulation of the mosquito microbiome for a deeper understanding of microbiota-host interactions.
蚊虫肠道微生物组在蚊虫的发育和适应中起着重要作用，为新型蚊虫控制策略提供了有前景的途径。在这里，我们提出了一种饲养无菌（无细菌）埃及伊蚊的方法，包括用含有高浓度肝和酵母提取物的琼脂塞喂养无菌幼虫。这种方法可以使幼虫完全发育到成年期，同时保持无菌状态；然而，与细菌定植的幼虫相比，无菌幼虫的发育时间延迟，生长受阻。这些数据挑战了活体微生物对蚊虫发育是必需的这一观点，并表明微生物组的主要作用是营养。此外，我们用从单一细菌物种到三成员群落的简化微生物群落来定植无菌蚊虫，证明了控制微生物群落组成的能力。这个无菌系统将允许系统地操纵蚊虫微生物组，以更深入地了解微生物组与宿主的相互作用。
