Meeting Abstract
38.1 Friday, Jan. 4 Identity and transfer of male reproductive gland proteins of the yellow fever mosquito (Aedes aegypti) SIROT, L.K.*; POULSON, R.L.; MCKENNA, M.C.; GIRNARY, H.; WOLFNER, M.F.; HARRINGTON, L.C.; Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; Cornell University, Ithaca, NY ls286@cornell.edu
Male reproductive gland proteins (mRGPs) that are transferred to females during mating impact the physiology and/or behavior of mated females in a broad range of organisms. Because these proteins affect both male and female reproductive success, studies of mRGPs may aid in identification of new targets and tools for controlling arthropod populations. We sought to identify mRGPs of the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti, the primary vector of dengue and yellow fever viruses. Earlier studies with Ae. aegypti demonstrated that male accessory gland fluid injected into virgin female Ae. aegypti stimulate female sexual refractoriness, blood feeding and digestion, flight, ovarian development, and oviposition. We identified 63 new putative Ae. aegypti mRGPs using bioinformatic comparisons to Drosophila melanogaster accessory gland proteins and mass spectrometry of proteins from Ae. aegypti male accessory glands and ejaculatory ducts and female reproductive tracts. Twenty-one of these proteins were found in the reproductive tract of mated females, but not of virgin females, suggesting that they are transferred from males to females during mating. Most of the putative mRGPs fall into the same protein classes as mRGPs in other organisms, although some appear to be evolving rapidly and lack identifiable homologs in Culex pipiens, Anopheles gambiae, and D. melanogaster. We identified Ae. aegypti mRGP proteins with predicted roles in proteolysis, protein folding, iron regulation, blood clotting, and immune response. These proteins may have important influences on behavior, survival and reproduction of female mosquitoes.
