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ARS Home » Plains Area » Manhattan, Kansas » Center for Grain and Animal Health Research » Stored Product Insect and Engineering Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #323953
Research Project: Impacting Quality through Preservation, Enhancement, and Measurement of Grain and Plant Traits

Location: Stored Product Insect and Engineering Research

Title: Rapid and non-destructive detection and identification two strains of Wolbachia in Aedes aegypti by near-infrared spectroscopy

Author
item SIKULU, MAGGY - Queensland Institute Of Medical Research
item MAIA, MARTA - Ifakara Health Institute
item MILALI, MASABHO - Ifakara Health Institute
item HENRY, MICHAEL - Ifakara Health Institute
item MKANDAWILE, GUSTAV - Ifakara Health Institute
item KHO, ELISE - Queensland Institute Of Medical Research
item WIRTZ, ROBERT - Centers For Disease Control And Prevention (CDC) - United States
item HUGO, LEON - Queensland Institute Of Medical Research
item Dowell, Floyd
item DEVINE, GREG - Queensland Institute Of Medical Research

Submitted to: PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/13/2016
Publication Date: 6/30/2016
Publication URL: http://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/63271
Citation: Sikulu, M.T., Maia, M.F., Milali, M.P., Henry, M., Mkandawile, G., Kho, E.A., Wirtz, R.A., Hugo, L.E., Dowell, F.E., Devine, G.J. 2016. Rapid and non-destructive detection and identification two strains of Wolbachia in Aedes aegypti by near-infrared spectroscopy. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 10(6):e0004759. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004759.

Interpretive Summary: The mosquito Aedes aegypti is the primary vector of the four human dengue viruses. It has been demonstrated that a bacteria, Wolbachia pipientis, blocks transmission of pathogens such as dengue. The bacterium can also reduce life spans and cause cytoplasmic incompatibility among insect populations. To reduce the risks of dengue transmission under field settings, scientists in Australia released Wolbachia infected Ae. aegypti into areas endemic for that mosquito. These rearing and release programs need careful monitoring to track the establishment, patterns and stability of Wolbachia invasions. We investigated the potential of using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to detect the presence of Wolbachia pipientis (wMel) in male and female laboratory-reared Ae aegypti mosquitoes. The release of Wolbachia transinfected mosquitoes is likely to form a key component of disease control strategies in the future. Our aim is to find faster, cheaper alternatives for monitoring those releases than the molecular diagnostics that are currently in use. Our findings indicate that NIRS can differentiate females and males infected with wMel from uninfected wild type samples with accuracies of about 90%. This non-destructive technique is much faster than other laboratory techniques. After the purchase of a NIRS spectrometer, the technique requires little sample processing, is non-destructive and does not consume any reagents.

Technical Abstract: We investigated the potential of using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to detect the presence of Wolbachia pipientis (wMel) in male and female laboratory-reared Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. The release of Wolbachia transinfected mosquitoes is likely to form a key component of disease control strategies in the future. Our aim is to find faster, cheaper alternatives for monitoring those releases than the molecular diagnostics that are currently in use. Our findings indicate that NIRS can differentiate females and males infected with wMel from uninfected wild type samples with accuracies of 92% (N=352) and 89% (N=444). This non-destructive technique is approximately 24 times faster than the standard polymerase chain reaction diagnostic techniques currently used for Wolbachia detection. After the purchase of a NIRS spectrometer, the technique requires little sample processing, is non-destructive and does not consume any reagents.