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As climate change alters Earth's biomes, it is expected the transmission dynamics of mosquito-borne viruses will change. While the effects of temperature changes on mosquito-virus interactions and the spread of the pathogens have been elucidated over the last decade, the impact of relative humidity changes is still relatively unknown. To overcome this knowledge gap, we exposed Aedes aegypti females to various humidity conditions. We measured different components of vectorial capacity such as survival, blood-feeding rates, and changes in infection and dissemination of Zika virus. Survival decreased as the humidity level decreased, while infection rates increased as the humidity level decreased. Alternatively, blood feeding rates and disseminated infection rates peaked at the intermediate 50% relative humidity treatment but were the same in the 30% and 80% relative humidity treatments. These results provide empirical evidence that Ae. aegypti exposure to low humidity can enhance Zika virus infection in the mosquito, which has important implications in predicting how climate change will impact mosquito-borne viruses.IMPORTANCEViruses transmitted by mosquitoes to humans are a major public health burden and are expected to increase under climate change. While we know that temperature is an important driver of variation in arbovirus replication in the mosquito, very little is known about how other relevant climate variables such as humidity will influence the interaction between mosquitoes and the viruses they transmit. Given the variability in humidity across environments, and the predicted changes in humidity under climate change, it is imperative that we also study the impact that it has on mosquito infection and transmission of arboviruses., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

The drivers and patterns of zoonotic virus emergence in the human population are poorly understood. The mosquito Aedes aegypti is a major arbovirus vector native to Africa that invaded most of the world's tropical belt over the past four centuries, after the evolution of a "domestic" form that specialized in biting humans and breeding in water storage containers. Here, we show that human specialization and subsequent spread of A. aegypti out of Africa were accompanied by an increase in its intrinsic ability to acquire and transmit the emerging human pathogen Zika virus. Thus, the recent evolution and global expansion of A. aegypti promoted arbovirus emergence not solely through increased vector-host contact but also as a result of enhanced vector susceptibility., (Copyright © 2020 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.)

The majority of mosquito-borne illness is spread by a few mosquito species that have evolved to specialize in biting humans, yet the precise causes of this behavioral shift are poorly understood. We address this gap in the arboviral vector Aedes aegypti. We first collect and characterize the behavior of mosquitoes from 27 sites scattered across the species' ancestral range in sub-Saharan Africa, revealing previously unrecognized variation in preference for human versus animal odor. We then use modeling to show that over 80% of this variation can be predicted by two ecological factors-dry season intensity and human population density. Finally, we integrate this information with whole-genome sequence data from 375 individual mosquitoes to identify a single underlying ancestry component linked to human preference. Genetic changes associated with human specialist ancestry were concentrated in a few chromosomal regions. Our findings suggest that human-biting in this important disease vector originally evolved as a by-product of breeding in human-stored water in areas where doing so provided the only means to survive the long, hot dry season. Our model also predicts that the rapid urbanization currently taking place in Africa will drive further mosquito evolution, causing a shift toward human-biting in many large cities by 2050., Competing Interests: Declaration of Interests The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

African populations of the mosquito Aedes aegypti are usually considered less susceptible to infection by human-pathogenic flaviviruses than globally invasive populations found outside Africa. Although this contrast has been well documented for Zika virus (ZIKV), it is unclear to what extent it is true for dengue virus (DENV), the most prevalent flavivirus of humans. Addressing this question is complicated by substantial genetic diversity among DENV strains, most notably in the form of four genetic types (DENV1 to DENV4), that can lead to genetically specific interactions with mosquito populations. Here, we carried out a survey of DENV susceptibility using a panel of seven field-derived Ae. aegypti colonies from across the African range of the species and a colony from Guadeloupe, French West Indies as non-African reference. We found considerable variation in the ability of African Ae. aegypti populations to acquire and replicate a panel of six DENV strains spanning the four DENV types. Although African Ae. aegypti populations were generally less susceptible than the reference non-African population from Guadeloupe, in several instances some African populations were equally or more susceptible than the Guadeloupe population. Moreover, the relative level of susceptibility between African mosquito populations depended on the DENV strain, indicating genetically specific interactions. We conclude that unlike ZIKV susceptibility, there is no clear-cut dichotomy in DENV susceptibility between African and non-African Ae. aegypti. DENV susceptibility of African Ae. aegypti populations is highly heterogeneous and largely governed by the specific pairing of mosquito population and DENV strain. Author summary: African populations of the mosquito Aedes aegypti are usually thought to be less likely to get infected by flaviviruses compared to Ae. aegypti mosquitoes found outside Africa. While this has been well-demonstrated for Zika virus, it is not clear if the same is true for dengue virus, which is the most common flavivirus in humans. Studying this is complicated by the strain diversity of dengue virus, including four main genetic types, potentially causing different interactions. In this study, we compared several mosquito populations and found that, in general, African mosquitoes were less likely to get infected by dengue virus compared to mosquitoes from outside Africa. However, in some cases, African mosquitoes were just as or even more likely to get infected. The specific strain of dengue virus also influenced how likely African mosquitoes were to get infected, showing that the relationship between African mosquitoes and dengue virus is complex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The mosquito Aedes aegypti is the main vector of dengue, Zika, chikungunya and yellow fever viruses. This major disease vector is thought to have arisen when the African subspecies Ae. aegypti formosus evolved from being zoophilic and living in forest habitats into a form that specialises on humans and resides near human population centres. The resulting domestic subspecies, Ae. aegypti aegypti, is found throughout the tropics and largely blood-feeds on humans. Results: To understand this transition, we have sequenced the exomes of mosquitoes collected from five populations from around the world. We found that Ae. aegypti specimens from an urban population in Senegal in West Africa were more closely related to populations in Mexico and Sri Lanka than they were to a nearby forest population. We estimate that the populations in Senegal and Mexico split just a few hundred years ago, and we found no evidence of Ae. aegypti aegypti mosquitoes migrating back to Africa from elsewhere in the tropics. The out-of-Africa migration was accompanied by a dramatic reduction in effective population size, resulting in a loss of genetic diversity and rare genetic variants. Conclusions: We conclude that a domestic population of Ae. aegypti in Senegal and domestic populations on other continents are more closely related to each other than to other African populations. This suggests that an ancestral population of Ae. aegypti evolved to become a human specialist in Africa, giving rise to the subspecies Ae. aegypti aegypti. The descendants of this population are still found in West Africa today, and the rest of the world was colonised when mosquitoes from this population migrated out of Africa. This is the first report of an African population of Ae. aegypti aegypti mosquitoes that is closely related to Asian and American populations. As the two subspecies differ in their ability to vector disease, their existence side by side in West Africa may have important implications for disease transmission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vector competence of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes is a quantitative genetic trait that varies among geographic locations and among different flavivirus species and genotypes within species. The subspecies Ae. aegypti formosus, found mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, is considered to be refractory to both dengue (DENV) and yellow fever viruses (YFV) compared to the more globally distributed Ae. aegypti aegypti. Within Senegal, vector competence varies with collection site and DENV-2 viral isolate, but knowledge about the interaction of West African Ae. aegypti with different flaviviruses is lacking. The current study utilizes low passage isolates of dengue-2 (DENV-2-75505 sylvatic genotype) and yellow fever (YFV BA-55 -West African Genotype I, or YFV DAK 1279-West African Genotype II) from West Africa and field derived Ae. aegypti collected throughout Senegal to determine whether vector competence is flavivirus or virus genotype dependent. Methodology/Principal Findings: Eight collections of 20–30 mosquitoes from different sites were fed a bloodmeal containing either DENV-2 or either isolate of YFV. Midgut and disseminated infection phenotypes were determined 14 days post infection. Collections varied significantly in the rate and intensity of midgut and disseminated infection among the three viruses. Conclusions/Significance: Overall, vector competence was dependent upon both viral and vector strains. Importantly, contrary to previous studies, sylvatic collections of Ae. aegypti showed high levels of disseminated infection for local isolates of both DENV-2 and YFV. Author Summary: Vector competence is defined as the intrinsic permissiveness of an arthropod vector for infection, dissemination, and transmission of a pathogen. The mosquito Aedes aegypti is the main vector for dengue and yellow fever viruses worldwide and is divided into two subspecies: Ae. aegypti aegypti and Ae. aegypti formosus. Aedes aegypti aegypti is found globally in tropical and subtropical regions, while Ae. aegypti formosus is mainly restricted to sub-Saharan Africa. Aedes aegypti formosus is considered to be a poor vector for both yellow fever and dengue, but some of these original studies with yellow fever were performed with highly passaged viral isolates collected at different locations than the mosquitoes. Viral genetics is an important determinant of vector competence and virus/mosquito genetic specificity exists in Ae. aegypti aegypti. We compared the vector competence of multiple collections of Ae. aegypti from throughout Senegal for both yellow fever and dengue viruses to demonstrate that vector competence in Ae. aegypti formosus is dependent on viral genotype. In contrast to earlier claims, populations of Ae. aegypti in West Africa can be competent vectors of flaviviruses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Aedes aegypti is the primary global vector to humans of yellow fever and dengue flaviviruses. Over the past 50 years, many population genetic studies have documented large genetic differences among global populations of this species. These studies initially used morphological polymorphisms, followed later by allozymes, and most recently various molecular genetic markers including microsatellites and mitochondrial markers. In particular, since 2000, fourteen publications and four unpublished datasets have used sequence data from the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 4 mitochondrial gene to compare Ae. aegypti collections and collectively 95 unique mtDNA haplotypes have been found. Phylogenetic analyses in these many studies consistently resolved two clades but no comprehensive study of mtDNA haplotypes have been made in Africa, the continent in which the species originated. Methods and Findings: ND4 haplotypes were sequenced in 426 Ae. aegypti s.l. from Senegal, West Africa and Kenya, East Africa. In Senegal 15 and in Kenya 7 new haplotypes were discovered. When added to the 95 published haplotypes and including 6 African Aedes species as outgroups, phylogenetic analyses showed that all but one Senegal haplotype occurred in a basal clade while most East African haplotypes occurred in a second clade arising from the basal clade. Globally distributed haplotypes occurred in both clades demonstrating that populations outside Africa consist of mixtures of mosquitoes from both clades. Conclusions: Populations of Ae. aegypti outside Africa consist of mosquitoes arising from one of two ancestral clades. One clade is basal and primarily associated with West Africa while the second arises from the first and contains primarily mosquitoes from East Africa Author Summary: The authors are all medical entomologists who have worked in the field for more than 30 years. Over the past 20 years we have primarily worked on Aedes aegypti, the primary mosquito vector of Dengue and Yellow Fever Viruses. Twelve years ago, we began using mitochondrial markers to study relationships among Ae. aegypti populations. Since that time, 14 publications and 4 datasets have used the same markers and collectively 95 unique mtDNA haplotypes have been found. Haplotype phylogenies have consistently identified two clades. However, it wasn't until we combined efforts with our African colleagues that we realized that the two clades largely correspond with West and East Africa. Aedes aegypti populations from throughout the world are "mixtures" of mosquitoes from these two original clades. We plan to continue this effort to determine whether the composition of Ae. aegypti populations affects their ability to transmit arboviruses and also if mitochondrial haplotypes differ between mosquitoes with or without the newly discovered chromosomal inversions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the processes bywhich species colonize and adapt tohuman habitats is particularly important in the case of disease-vectoring arthropods. The mosquito species Aedes aegypti, a major vector of dengue and yellow fever viruses, probably originated as a wild, zoophilic species in sub-Saharan Africa, where some populations still breed in tree holes in forested habitats. Many populations of the species, however, have evolved to thrive in human habitats and to bite humans. This includes some populationswithin Africa aswell as almost all those outside Africa. It is not clearwhether all domestic populations are genetically related and represent a single 'domestication' event, orwhether associationwith human habitats has developed multiple times independently within the species. To test the hypotheses above, we screened 24worldwide population samples of Ae. aegypti at 12 polymorphic microsatellite loci. We identified two distinct genetic clusters: one included all domestic populations outside of Africa and the other included both domestic and forest populations within Africa. This suggests that human association in Africa occurred independently from that in domestic populations across the rest of the world. Additionally, measures of genetic diversity support Ae. aegypti in Africa as the ancestral form of the species. Individuals from domestic populations outside Africa can reliably be assigned back to their population of origin, which will help determine the origins of new introductions of Ae. aegypti. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Aedes aegypti, the "yellow fever mosquito", is the primary vector to humans of the four serotypes of dengue viruses (DENV1-4) and yellow fever virus (YFV) and is a known vector of Chikungunya virus. There are two recognized subspecies of Ae. aegypti sensu latu (s.l.): the presumed ancestral form, Ae. aegypti formosus (Aaf), a primarily sylvan mosquito in sub-Saharan Africa, and Ae. aegypti aegypti (Aaa), found globally in tropical and subtropical regions typically in association with humans. The designation of Ae. aegypti s.l. subspecies arose from observations made in East Africa in the late 1950s that the frequency of pale "forms" of Ae. aegypti was higher in populations in and around human dwellings than in those of the nearby bush. But few studies have been made of Ae. aegypti s.l. in West Africa. To address this deficiency we have been studying the population genetics, subspecies composition and vector competence for DENV-2 of Ae. aegypti s.l. in Senegal. Methods and Findings: A population genetic analysis of gene flow was conducted among 1,040 Aedes aegypti s.l. from 19 collections distributed across the five phytogeographic regions of Senegal. Adults lacking pale scales on their first abdominal tergite were classified as Aedes aegypti formosus (Aaf) following the original description of the subspecies and the remainder were classified as Aedes aegypti aegypti (Aaa). There was a clear northwest–southeast cline in the abundance of Aaa and Aaf. Collections from the northern Sahelian region contained only Aaa while southern Forest gallery collections contained only Aaf. The two subspecies occurred in sympatry in four collections north of the Gambia in the central Savannah region and Aaa was a minor component of two collections from the Forest gallery area. Mosquitoes from 11 collections were orally challenged with DENV-2 virus. In agreement with the early literature, Aaf had significantly lower vector competence than Aaa. Among pure Aaa collections, the disseminated infection rate (DIR) was 73.9% with a midgut infection barrier (MIB) rate of 6.8%, and a midgut escape barrier (MEB) rate of 19.3%, while among pure Aaf collections, DIR = 34.2%, MIB rate = 7.4%, and MEB rate = 58.4%. Allele and genotype frequencies were analyzed at 11 nuclear single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) loci using allele specific PCR and melting curve analysis. In agreement with a published isozyme gene flow study in Senegal, only a small and statistically insignificant percentage of the variance in allele frequencies was associated with subspecies. Conclusions: These results add to our understanding of the global phylogeny of Aedes aegypti s.l., suggesting that West African Aaa and Aaf are monophyletic and that Aaa evolved in West Africa from an Aaf ancestor. Author Summary: We conducted a population genetic study with 1,040 Aedes aegypti sensu latu (s.l.) collected from 19 sites distributed across the five phytogeographic regions of Senegal. Adult mosquitoes without pale scales on their first abdominal tergite were classified as Aedes aegypti formosus (Aaf) and those having pale scales as Aedes aegypti aegypti (Aaa). We found the two forms distributed along a northwest–southeast cline. Northern Sahelian collections contained only Aaa while the southern Forest gallery collections consisted of only Aaf. The two subspecies were sympatric in four collections north of The Gambia. Aaa was a minor component of two collections from the Forest gallery area. Eleven of these collections were fed a dengue-2 virus–infected bloodmeal. Consistent with the early literature, Aaf had lower vector competence than Aaa. In agreement with a recently published isozyme gene flow study in Senegal, analyzes of allele frequencies indicated only a small, nonsignificant percentage of the variance associated with subspecies. These results improve our understanding of the global phylogeny of Aedes aegypti s.l., suggesting that West African Aaa and Aaf are monophyletic and that Aaf, the black "sylvan" species, is the ancestor of Aaa, the lighter "domestic" species in West Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]