« Previous AbstractMonitoring of fresh-cut Valerianella locusta Laterr. shelf life by electronic nose and VIS-NIR spectroscopy    Next AbstractDivision of labor and structural plasticity in an extrinsic serotonergic mushroom body neuron in the ant Pheidole dentata »

Curr Biol

Title:		Human scent guides mosquito thermotaxis and host selection under naturalistic conditions
Author(s):		Giraldo D; Rankin-Turner S; Corver A; Tauxe GM; Gao AL; Jackson DM; Simubali L; Book C; Stevenson JC; Thuma PE; McCoy RC; Gordus A; Mburu MM; Simulundu E; McMeniman CJ;
Address:		"W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA. Macha Research Trust, Choma District, PO Box 630166, Zambia. W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Macha Research Trust, Choma District, PO Box 630166, Zambia. Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA. The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA. W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. Electronic address: cmcmeni1@jhu.edu"
Journal Title:		Curr Biol
Year:		2023
Volume:		20230519
Issue:		12
Page Number:		2367 - 2382
DOI:		10.1016/j.cub.2023.04.050
ISSN/ISBN:		1879-0445 (Electronic) 0960-9822 (Linking)
Abstract:		"The African malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae exhibits a strong innate drive to seek out humans in its sensory environment, classically entering homes to land on human skin in the hours flanking midnight. To gain insight into the role that olfactory cues emanating from the human body play in generating this epidemiologically important behavior, we developed a large-scale multi-choice preference assay in Zambia with infrared motion vision under semi-field conditions. We determined that An. gambiae prefers to land on arrayed visual targets warmed to human skin temperature during the nighttime when they are baited with carbon dioxide (CO(2)) emissions reflective of a large human over background air, body odor from one human over CO(2), and the scent of one sleeping human over another. Applying integrative whole body volatilomics to multiple humans tested simultaneously in competition in a six-choice assay, we reveal high attractiveness is associated with whole body odor profiles from humans with increased relative abundances of the volatile carboxylic acids butyric acid, isobutryic acid, and isovaleric acid, and the skin microbe-generated methyl ketone acetoin. Conversely, those least preferred had whole body odor that was depleted of carboxylic acids among other compounds and enriched with the monoterpenoid eucalyptol. Across expansive spatial scales, heated targets without CO(2) or whole body odor were minimally or not attractive at all to An. gambiae. These results indicate that human scent acts critically to guide thermotaxis and host selection by this prolific malaria vector as it navigates towards humans, yielding intrinsic heterogeneity in human biting risk"
Keywords:		"Animals Humans *Anopheles Odorants Body Odor Carbon Dioxide *Malaria Mosquito Vectors Pheromones, Human *Taxis Response Carboxylic Acids Anopheles gambiae host preference human scent malaria mosquito olfaction thermotaxis volatile organic compound volatil;neuroscience;"
Notes:		"MedlineGiraldo, Diego Rankin-Turner, Stephanie Corver, Abel Tauxe, Genevieve M Gao, Anne L Jackson, Dorian M Simubali, Limonty Book, Christopher Stevenson, Jennifer C Thuma, Philip E McCoy, Rajiv C Gordus, Andrew Mburu, Monicah M Simulundu, Edgar McMeniman, Conor J eng R35 GM124883/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ T32 AI138953/AI/NIAID NIH HHS/ Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England 2023/05/21 Curr Biol. 2023 Jun 19; 33(12):2367-2382.e7. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.04.050. Epub 2023 May 19"