Seok Sangwoo, Vorsino Adam E, Collier Travis C, Hapairai Limb K, Jacobsen Christopher M, Hasty Jeomhee M, Romero-Weaver Ana L, Buckner Eva A, LaPointe Dennis A, Leong Mark K H, Braack Leo, Tabuloc Christine A, Chiu Joanna C, Raban Robyn, Akbari Omar S, Lee Yoosook
Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, Department of Entomology and Nematology, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Vero Beach, Florida, United States of America.
Strategic Habitat Conservation Program, Ecological Services, Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office, United States of America Fish and Wildlife Service, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States of America.
PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2025 Aug 11;19(8):e0013414. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0013414. eCollection 2025 Aug.
Remote Pacific islands (RPI) are characterized by ecological isolation, diverse endemic species, and vulnerability to invasive organisms due to globalization-driven connectivity. Among these species, Aedes albopictus, a highly invasive vector of flaviviruses, has spread extensively across the RPI via human-mediated dispersal, posing significant health and economic burdens. While the population structure and the degree of gene flow between mosquito populations can inform the dispersal pathways critical for disease vector management, the population genetics of Ae. albopictus in Northern RPI remains understudied. The present work investigated the population structure and connectivity of Ae. albopictus populations from Guam, Hawaiian Islands, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) to inform disease and vector-based biosecurity risks and develop targeted management strategies. This is the first assessment to develop and analyze whole genome sequences of Ae. albopictus for RPI, enabling more accurate estimates of differentiation, admixture, and ancestry. We found distinct genetic clustering between regions, distinct ancestry of populations across RPI, and potential invasions that originated from Hawaii and spread into the RMI, and invasions from North America that spread to Guam. These findings can inform biosecurity protocols to limit the invasion of Ae. albopictus and their associated diseases within Hawaii and around the Pacific. Given the significant degree of genetic differentiation, we found between islets, islands, and regions, the genome data from this study can be used to enable the development of locally confined geographically isolated gene drives. These drives may be used to prevent and control outbreaks of dengue, chikungunya, and Zika, diseases that have had devastating consequences in these remote island communities.
偏远太平洋岛屿（RPI）具有生态隔离、特有物种多样以及因全球化驱动的连通性而易受入侵生物影响的特点。在这些物种中，白纹伊蚊是黄病毒的一种高度入侵性传播媒介，已通过人类介导的扩散在RPI广泛传播，带来了重大的健康和经济负担。虽然蚊虫种群的结构和基因流动程度可以为疾病传播媒介管理的关键扩散途径提供信息，但北RPI地区白纹伊蚊的种群遗传学仍未得到充分研究。本研究调查了来自关岛、夏威夷群岛和马绍尔群岛共和国（RMI）的白纹伊蚊种群的结构和连通性，以了解疾病和基于传播媒介的生物安全风险，并制定有针对性的管理策略。这是首次对RPI白纹伊蚊的全基因组序列进行开发和分析，能够更准确地估计分化、混合和祖先情况。我们发现各区域之间存在明显的遗传聚类，RPI各地种群有不同的祖先，以及可能起源于夏威夷并扩散到RMI的入侵事件，还有从北美扩散到关岛的入侵事件。这些发现可为生物安全协议提供信息，以限制白纹伊蚊及其相关疾病在夏威夷和太平洋周边地区的入侵。鉴于我们在小岛、岛屿和区域之间发现了显著程度的遗传分化，本研究的基因组数据可用于推动局部受限的地理隔离基因驱动的开发。这些驱动可用于预防和控制登革热、基孔肯雅热和寨卡病毒病的爆发，这些疾病在这些偏远岛屿社区造成了毁灭性后果。
