Thursday, April 9, 2015
New Research may lead to Control of Mosquito Populations
Not only do mosquitoes often prove to be a huge annoyance, but are also responsible for transmitting diseases such as malaria, yellow fever, west Nile virus and more across the globe. In attempts to solve this issue, entomologists at the University of Georgia have discovered a hormonal mechanism which allows mosquitoes to reproduce. Control of this mechanism could effectively disable mosquitoes from laying eggs, resulting in an efficient control of mosquito populations.
It was found that female mosquitoes produce two hormones responsible for the production of mature eggs, an insulin-like peptide (ILP) and an ovary ecdysteroid-ogenic hormone (OEH). All genomes of various mosquito species analyzed contained OEH, while some fruit fly species did not. These hormones work by receptors on their cell surfaces. Researchers compared DNA sequences of over 400 receptors in the genomes of mosquitoes and fruit flies, and found a gene for a receptor with an unknown function. By inhibiting the expression of this gene, the mosquitoes were unable to produce eggs. Development of this current research may prove to be a great leap in attempts to control mosquito populations.
Labels:
hormones,
mosquitoes,
population control
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I think this is awesome because I am a mosquito magnet and they are relentless. No mosquito or bug repellent will keep them away from. I really hope this reduces the population size of mosquitos because I am tired of getting eaten alive.
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