Aedes albopictus microbiome diversity

The mosquito microbiome is essential for maintaining organismal function, modulating immune priming, nutrition, metabolism, reproduction, development and pathogen defense. This microbiome consists of a consortium of interacting microorganisms that reside on and within mosquito host. Mosquitoes likely acquire the majority of this diversity from their environment, and to some extent transstadially during metamorphosis. It is becoming increasingly important to understand the microbiome of mosquitoes in relation to the species distribution as we develop mitigation strategies to suppress mosquito-borne disease. This study sought to determine how the environment influences the distribution and microbiome of Aedes albopictus on the island of Maui. Adult mosquitoes were collected on the island of Maui over a one-year period. Aedes albopictus was found throughout the year and widely distributed across the island of Maui, even at higher elevations (1150 m). The adult mosquitoes collected were used to assess the alpha and beta diversity of bacteria across sites and time using next-generation sequencing technologies. The results indicate that the mosquito microbiome composition varies across geographic locations but is not affected by rainfall or temperature. The analysis also discovered that mosquitoes infected with the parasite Ascogregarina taiwanensis had a different microbiome composition than that of mosquitoes with little to no infection. To our knowledge, this is the first study that has assessed the diversity and variation of the microbiome of a medically important mosquito in Hawai’i.