# Role of the Gut Microbiome in Mosquito Development

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA · 2020 · $355,000

## Abstract

Project Summary
Mosquitoes are well recognized as the most important arthropod vectors of disease-causing
pathogens. This is because most species must feed on vertebrate blood as adult females to
reproduce. In turn, consumption of multiple blood meals enables pathogen transmission
between hosts while vector abundance influences transmission risks. Thus, approaches that
disrupt pathogen transmission and/or reduce vector populations are both strategies for
disease control. Mosquitoes host microbes in their digestive tract that collectively form a gut
microbiota. This application is a renewal request to continue our work on the essential role of
the gut microbiota in mosquito development. Our current award focuses on Aedes aegypti,
which is a major vector of several human diseases. Our studies to date indicate that microbe-
induced gut hypoxia functions as a growth signal, and that transduction of this signal in
mosquito larvae requires hypoxia-induced transcription factors (HIFs). Results further indicate
that HIF signaling activates several processes with essential roles in nutrient acquisition,
growth and metabolism. The overall goal of this proposal is to unravel the molecular
mechanisms that connect microbe-induced gut hypoxia and HIF signaling to the nutrients and
signaling pathways that regulate growth. Proposed studies have the potential for
transformative impacts on understanding the role of the gut microbiota in development of most
if not all vector mosquito species. Proposed Specific Aims are to:
 1. Identify HIF target genes in Ae. aegypti.
 2. Characterize Ae. aegypti HIF-α isoforms.
 3. Analyze the role of HIF signaling in lipogenesis and midgut growth.
 4. Assess the role of the gut microbiota as nutrient source for mosquito development.
Expected outcomes will identify molecular targets for disrupting mosquito development and
factors that could improve mosquito rearing for control programs. Results will also guide
understanding of how diet and the gut microbiota regulate growth of all mosquito species.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9950972
- **Project number:** 5R01AI106892-07
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Michael Strand
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $355,000
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2014-09-16 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9950972

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9950972, Role of the Gut Microbiome in Mosquito Development (5R01AI106892-07). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9950972. Licensed CC0.

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