Anopheles gambiae,
African malaria mosquito

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Taxonomic lineage

cellular organisms - Eukaryota - Fungi/Metazoa group - Metazoa - Eumetazoa - Bilateria - Coelomata - Protostomia - Panarthropoda - Arthropoda - Mandibulata - Pancrustacea - Hexapoda - Insecta - Dicondylia - Pterygota - Neoptera - Endopterygota - Diptera - Nematocera - Culicimorpha - Culicoidea - Culicidae - Anophelinae - Anopheles - Cellia - Pyretophorus - gambiae species complex - Anopheles gambiae

Brief facts

• Anopheles mosquitoes can be distinguished from other mosquitoes by the palps, which are as long as the proboscis, and by the presence of discrete blocks of black and white scales on the wings. Adult Anopheles can also be identified by their typical resting position: males and females rest with their abdomens sticking up in the air rather than parallel to the surface on which they are resting.
• One important behavioral factor is the degree to which an Anopheles species prefers to feed on humans (anthropophily) or animals such as cattle (zoophily). Anthrophilic Anopheles are more likely to transmit the malaria parasites from one person to another. Most Anopheles mosquitoes are not exclusively anthropophilic or zoophilic. However, the primary malaria vectors in Africa, A. gambiae and A. funestus, are strongly anthropophilic and, consequently, are two of the most efficient malaria vectors in the world.
• Female mosquitoes of the genus Anopheles, including A. gambiae, are main vectors for transmitting malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, which is responsible for the death of more than a million of people annually. A. gambiae species parasitize humans almost exclusively and are allegedly attracted to smelly feet.
  Of the approximately 430 known species of Anopheles, only 30-50 transmit malaria in nature. The successful development of the malaria parasite in the mosquito (from the gametocyte stage to the sporozoite stage) depends on several factors. The most important is ambient temperature and humidity (higher temperatures accelerate the parasite growth in the mosquito) and whether the Anopheles survives long enough to allow the parasite to complete its cycle in the mosquito host (from 10 to 18 days).
• The Anopheles mosquitoes are also vectors of O'nyong-nyong virus as well as parasitic nematodes that cause lymphatic filariasis, a disfiguring and incapacitating disease (detailed information about Wuchereria bancrofti and Brugia malayi at MetaPathogen). They are also competent to transmit heartworms (detailed information about ubiquitous parasites - heartworms, Dirofilaria immitis at MetaPathogen).
• Most Anopheles mosquitoes are crepuscular (active at dusk or dawn) or nocturnal (active at night). Some Anopheles mosquitoes feed indoors (endophagic) while others feed outdoors (exophagic). After blood feeding, some Anopheles mosquitoes prefer to rest indoors (endophilic) while others prefer to rest outdoors (exophilic).

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Life cycle of A. gambiae

Life cycle can be completed in 1.5-3 weeks.

• Egg Mosquitoes mate during flight. Once mated, the female searches out a blood meal. Then, she seeks out a resting place to digest her meal. Once the meal has been digested, the ovaries develop and the female lays eggs (typically in 2 days after sufficient bloodmeal). Usually female lays a batch of 50-200 eggs in shape of floating raft on the surface of the water at night.
  • Embryo
• Hatching In tropical temperatures the eggs hatch in two to three days.
• Larval MeSH All larval stages are aquatic; collectively they take a minimum of 4 days to complete. The larvae lie just below the surface of the water and feed on microorganisms, and, typically, after 7-14 days (9 days in controlled environment at 28 degrees Celsius) they turn into pupae during a five-minute process. Anopheles are unlike Culex and Aedes larvae since they do not have a breathing tube, they must lie parallel to the water surface in order to get a supply of oxygen through a breathing opening.
  • 1st instar larva
  • 1st molting
  • 2nd instar larva
  • 2nd molting
  • 3rd instar larva
  • 3rd molting
  • 4th instar larva
  • 4th molting
• Pupa MeSH Pupal stage takes 2 days (at 28 degrees Celsius) to several weeks to complete depending on temperature; the pupa is comma-shaped and is the least active stage of the Anopheles lifecycle. After two to four days the pupa metamorphoses into an adult mosquito.
• Newly eclosed Very young adult mosquito; the adults emerge during late evening and are able to fly within minutes.
• Adult The adult stage is when the female acts as malaria vector. Both male and female mosquitoes feed on nectar and damaged fruits, but only females feed on animal blood to provide proteins for their eggs. The adult mosquito survives for between one week (in natural habitat) and one month (in captivity).

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Male mating biology

Howell PI, Knols BG. Male mating biology. Malar J. 2009 Nov 16;8 Suppl 2:S8.

The sexually mature male:
A. diurnal indoor resting,
B. 1 hour prior to swarming the antennal fibrillae become erect,
C. males depart to commence swarming,
D. After swarming ceases, male ingest a sugar meal prior to resuming indoor resting.

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Anopheles spp. breeding grounds

Keating J, Macintyre K, Mbogo CM, Githure JI, Beier JC. Characterization of potential larval habitats for Anopheles mosquitoes in relation to urban land-use in Malindi, Kenya. Int J Health Geogr. 2004 May 4;3(1):9. (PMID: 15125778)

Pictures illustrating the types of habitat identified by strata during this study: (A) Swimming pool in well drained tourist area; (B) Broken water pipe in well drained residential area; (C) Open water tank in poorly drained area; (D) Pond in poorly drained area; (E) Drainage channel in well drained area; and (F) Ditch and tire tracks in poorly drained area.

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Keating J, Macintyre K, Mbogo CM, Githure JI, Beier JC. Characterization of potential larval habitats for Anopheles mosquitoes in relation to urban land-use in Malindi, Kenya. Int J Health Geogr. 2004 May 4;3(1):9. (PMID: 15125778)

Dipper content from sewage pond in Temeke municipality.

Sewage pond in Temeke municipality, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

"Matuta" type of agriculture in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

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Mapping Anopheles in Africa under climate change

Tonnang HE, Kangalawe RY, Yanda PZ. Predicting and mapping malaria under climate change scenarios: the potential redistribution of malaria vectors in Africa. Malar J. 2010 Apr 23;9:111.

The Anopheles breeding and survival are determined and characterized by rainfall and humidity. In relation to these criteria the following scenarios were chosen:

• a) Scenario 1: A rise of 2°C Africa wide temperature, and 10% increase of summer rainfall and 10% decrease in winter rainfall.
• b) Scenario 2: A 0.1°C rise in summer and winter maximum and minimum temperatures per degree of latitude, and a 10% increase in rainfall in summer, and 10% decrease in winter.
• c) Scenario 3: A rise of 4°C Africa wide temperature, and 20% increase of summer rainfall and 20% decrease in winter rainfall.

(A) Distribution of A. gambiae under current climate.
(B) Distribution of A. gambiae illustrating species ranges shifts under climate change scenario 1.
(C) Distribution of A. gambiae illustrating species ranges shifts under climate change scenario 2.
(D) Distribution of A. gambiae illustrating species ranges shifts under climate change scenario 3.

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References

• Das S, Garver L, Dimopoulos G. Protocol for mosquito rearing (A. gambiae). J Vis Exp. 2007;(5):221. Epub 2007 Jul 4.
• Lehmann T, Diabate A. The molecular forms of Anopheles gambiae: a phenotypic perspective. Infect Genet Evol. 2008 Sep;8(5):737-46.
• Budiansky S. Creatures of our own making. Science. 2002 Oct 4;298(5591):80-6.
• Garner P, Graves PM. The benefits of artemisinin combination therapy for malaria extend beyond the individual patient. PLoS Med. 2005 Apr;2(4):e105. Epub 2005 Apr 26.
• Kalluri S et al. Surveillance of arthropod vector-borne infectious diseases using remote sensing techniques: a review. PLoS Pathog. 2007 Oct 26;3(10):1361-71.
• Major subject Anppheles gambiae Free full text articles

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