# Diversity of the Mosquito Microbiota and its Influence on Pathogen Transmission

> **NIH NIH P20** · UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII AT MANOA · 2021 · $174,670

## Abstract

Project Summary – PROJECT 2: JI, Matthew Medeiros
The symbiotic microbiota of mosquitoes has pervasive effects on host traits, including those of vectors of
important human diseases like dengue virus, chikungunya virus, and Zika virus. Coordinated interactions
between mosquitoes and their microbiota shape mosquito metabolism, development, fecundity, survival, and
immune systems. These effects on individual vectors may scale to influence the transmission of infectious
human pathogens at the population and community levels. While the mosquito microbiota is known to
modulate the capacity of vectors to sustain human pathogen transmission, the factors that contribute to
variation in the composition and density of the mosquito microbiota across individual vectors and vector
populations remain poorly resolved. The central hypothesis of this proposal posits that (i) environmental,
ecological, and genetic forces drive the assembly of the mosquito microbiota; (ii) differences in these forces
over time and space produce variation in the microbiota between individual vectors; and, (iii) this variation
between individual vectors scales to impact disease transmission among hosts, including humans. To test this
hypothesis, this study will employ numerous carefully designed experiments in both field and controlled
laboratory settings. These experiments aim to clarify the role of environmental, ecological, and genetic factors
in shaping mosquito microbiota diversity using Hawaiian populations of two medically important vectors, Culex
quinquefasciatus and Aedes albopictus. In addition, it will investigate the consequences of this diversity on
dengue transmission, the most relevant mosquito-borne pathogen in Hawai`i. Expected outcomes of this work
include a better model for the assembly of the mosquito microbiota and its cumulative impact on pathogen
transmission. Ultimately, this study is expected to have a positive translational impact by informing the
development of novel, microbe-based strategies to mitigate mosquito-borne diseases of public health concern.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10237919
- **Project number:** 5P20GM125508-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII AT MANOA
- **Principal Investigator:** Matthew C I Medeiros
- **Activity code:** P20 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $174,670
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-08-15 → 2023-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10237919

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10237919, Diversity of the Mosquito Microbiota and its Influence on Pathogen Transmission (5P20GM125508-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10237919. Licensed CC0.

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