Publications

regulation of the vitellogenin receptor during drosophila melanogaster oogenesis.	in many insects, development of the oocyte arrests temporarily just before vitellogenesis, the period when vitellogenins (yolk proteins) accumulate in the oocyte. following hormonal and environmental cues, development of the oocyte resumes, and endocytosis of vitellogenins begins. an essential component of yolk uptake is the vitellogenin receptor. in this report, we describe the ovarian expression pattern and subcellular localization of the mrna and protein encoded by the drosophila melanogaster ...	10679010
receptor-mediated endocytosis in the caenorhabditis elegans oocyte.	the caenorhabditis elegans oocyte is a highly amenable system for forward and reverse genetic analysis of receptor-mediated endocytosis. we describe the use of transgenic strains expressing a vitellogenin::green fluorescent protein (yp170::gfp) fusion to monitor yolk endocytosis by the c. elegans oocyte in vivo. this yp170::gfp reporter was used to assay the functions of c. elegans predicted proteins homologous to vertebrate endocytosis factors using rna-mediated interference. we show that the b ...	10588660
the other dr finlay		10473479
scientists try new strategy to eradicate dengue fever.	in a bid to reduce the risk of dengue fever in parts of vietnam, the australian foundation for the peoples of asia and the pacific, an aid organization, recently completed a 3-year program using the mesocyclops crustacean, an organism about 1 mm long which eats the larvae of mosquitos which transmit dengue fever. the program appears to eradicated the larvae from the northern vietnamese province of phan boi, and there was a 75% success rate in other provinces. the queensland institute of medical ...	10037618
toxicity of certain penta-coordinated organotin(iv) and tetra-coordinated tin(ii) complexes of heterocyclic beta-diketones against the larvae of aedes aegypti (liston).	some organotin(iv) and tin(ii) complexes of composition r(3)sn[r'coc:con(c(6)h(5))n:cch(3)] (where r=c(4)h(9), r'=ch(3), c(3)h(5), p-clc(6)h(4); r=c(6)h(5), r'=c(6)h(5) and p-clc(6)h(4)) and sn[p-clc(6)h(4)coc:con(c(6)h(5))n:cch(3)](2) were screened for their toxicity against aedes aegypti larvae. organotin(iv) complexes were more active than tin(ii) complexes.	18472910
aedes aegypti in tucson, arizona.		9866754
high level transactivation by a modified bombyx ecdysone receptor in mammalian cells without exogenous retinoid x receptor.	our studies of the bombyx mori ecdysone receptor (be) revealed that, unlike the drosophila melanogaster ecdysone receptor (de), treatment of be with the ecdysone agonist tebufenozide stimulated high level transactivation in mammalian cells without adding an exogenous heterodimer partner. gel mobility shift and transfection assays with both the ultraspiracle gene product (usp) and retinoid x receptor heterodimer partners indicated that this property of be stems from significantly augmented hetero ...	9653129
the lepidopteran transposon vector, piggybac, mediates germ-line transformation in the mediterranean fruit fly.	the piggybac (ifp2) short inverted terminal repeat transposable element from the cabbage looper trichoplusia ni was tested for gene transfer vector function as part of a bipartite vector-helper system in the mediterranean fruit fly ceratitis capitata. a piggybac vector marked with the medfly white gene was tested with a normally regulated piggybac transposase helper at two different concentrations in a white eye host strain. both experiments yielded transformants at an approximate frequency of 3 ...	9636182
mariner transposition and transformation of the yellow fever mosquito, aedes aegypti.	the mariner transposable element is capable of interplasmid transposition in the embryonic soma of the yellow fever mosquito, aedes aegypti. to determine if this demonstrated mobility could be utilized to genetically transform the mosquito, a modified mariner element marked with a wild-type allele of the drosophila melanogaster cinnabar gene was microinjected into embryos of a kynurenine hydroxylase-deficient, white-eyed recipient strain. three of 69 fertile male founders resulting from the micr ...	9520438
mosquito transferrin, an acute-phase protein that is up-regulated upon infection.	when treated with heat-killed bacterial cells, mosquito cells in culture respond by up-regulating several proteins. among these is a 66-kda protein (p66) that is secreted from cells derived from both aedes aegypti and aedes albopictus. p66 was degraded by proteolysis and gave a virtually identical pattern of peptide products for each mosquito species. the sequence of one peptide (31 amino acids) was determined and found to have similarity to insect transferrins. by using conserved regions of ins ...	9356450
transposable elements as sources of variation in animals and plants.	a tremendous wealth of data is accumulating on the variety and distribution of transposable elements (tes) in natural populations. there is little doubt that tes provide new genetic variation on a scale, and with a degree of sophistication, previously unimagined. there are many examples of mutations and other types of genetic variation associated with the activity of mobile elements. mutant phenotypes range from subtle changes in tissue specificity to dramatic alterations in the development and ...	9223252
the reemergence of aedes aegypti in arizona.		9204311
intensive linkage mapping in a wasp (bracon hebetor) and a mosquito (aedes aegypti) with single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis of random amplified polymorphic dna markers.	the use of random amplified polymorphic dna from the polymerase chain reaction (rapd-pcr) allows efficient construction of saturated linkage maps. however, when analyzed by agarose gel electrophoresis, most rapd-pcr markers segregate as dominant alleles, reducing the amount of linkage information obtained. we describe the use of single strand conformation polymorphism (sscp) analysis of rapd markers to generate linkage maps in a haplodiploid parasitic wasp bracon (habrobracon) hebetor and a dipl ...	8844159
subunit cleavage of mosquito pro-vitellogenin by a subtilisin-like convertase.	the eukaryotic convertase family plays an important role in posttranslational proteolytic processing and activation of many pro- and polypeptides that have at their cleavage sites the paired basic motif, rx(k/r)r. recent studies have revealed that the cleavage site of insect pro-vitellogenins (pro-vg) also contains this motif. to identify and characterize the insect pro-vg processing enzyme, vg convertase (vc), its cdna was cloned from a vitellogenic female fat body cdna library of the mosquito, ...	8650241
detection of wolbachia from field collected aedes albopictus skuse in malaysia.	wolbachia-based vector control strategies have been proposed as a mean to augment the existing measures for controlling dengue vector. prior to utilizing wolbachia in novel vector control strategies, it is crucial to understand the wolbachia-mosquito interactions. many studies have only focused on the prevalence of wolbachia in female aedes albopictus with lack of attention on wolbachia infection on the male ae. albopictus which also affects the effective expression of wolbachia induced- cytopla ...	26354218
underrecognition of dengue during 2013 epidemic in luanda, angola.	during the 2013 dengue epidemic in luanda, angola, 811 dengue rapid diagnostic test-positive cases were reported to the ministry of health. to better understand the magnitude of the epidemic and identify risk factors for dengue virus (denv) infection, we conducted cluster surveys around households of case-patients and randomly selected households 6 weeks after the peak of the epidemic. of 173 case cluster participants, 16 (9%) exhibited evidence of recent denv infection. of 247 random cluster pa ...	26196224
a comparative analysis of reproductive biology of insect vectors of human disease.	studying the reproductive strategies of insect species that transmit diseases to humans can identify new exploitable targets for the development of vector control methods. here we describe shared characteristics and individual features of the reproductive biology of three major disease vectors: anopheles gambiae, aedes aegypti and glossina morsitans. current studies are identifying i) species-specific molecular cascades that determine female monandrous behavior, ii) core aspects of egg developme ...	26140265
sscp analysis of cdna markers provides a dense linkage map of the aedes aegypti genome.	an intensive linkage map of the yellow fever mosquito, aedes aegypti, was constructed using single-strand conformation polymorphism (sscp) analysis of cdna markers to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (snps). a total of 94 a. aegypti cdnas were downloaded from genbank and primers were designed to amplify fragments <500 bp in size. these primer pairs amplified 94 loci, 57 (61%) of which segregated in a single f(1) intercross family among 83 f(2) progeny. this allowed us to produce a dense ...	11404335
integration of the aedes aegypti mosquito genetic linkage and physical maps.	two approaches were used to correlate the aedes aegypti genetic linkage map to the physical map. sts markers were developed for previously mapped rflp-based genetic markers so that large genomic clones from cosmid libraries could be found and placed to the metaphase chromosome physical maps using standard fish methods. eight cosmids were identified that contained eight rflp marker sequences, and these cosmids were located on the metaphase chromosomes. twenty-one cdnas were mapped directly to met ...	11238414
glycoproteins from insect cells: sialylated or not?	our growing comprehension of the biological roles of glycan moieties has created a clear need for expression systems that can produce mammalian-type glycoproteins. in turn, this has intensified interest in understanding the protein glycosylation pathways of the heterologous hosts that are commonly used for recombinant glycoprotein expression. among these, insect cells are the most widely used and, particularly in their role as hosts for baculovirus expression vectors, provide a powerful tool for ...	11308014
epidemiological characteristics and risk factors of dengue infection in korean travelers.	dengue viral infection has rapidly spread around the world in recent decades. in korea, autochthonous cases of dengue fever have not been confirmed yet. however, imported dengue cases have been increased since 2001. the risk of developing severe dengue in korean has been increased by the accumulation of past-infected persons with residual antibodies to dengue virus and the remarkable growth of traveling to endemic countries in southeast asia. notably, most of imported dengue cases were identifie ...	27822922
imported chikungunya virus strains, taiwan, 2006-2014.	we identified 78 imported chikungunya cases in taiwan during 2006-2014. sixty-six (84.6%) cases were initially suspected to be dengue, which indicates the necessity for laboratory diagnostics in differentiation between dengue and chikungunya. results also emphasize the need for active surveillance of febrile illness at points of entry.	27767908
essential oil composition, antimicrobial and pharmacological activities of lippia sidoides cham. (verbenaceae) from são gonçalo do abaeté, minas gerais, brazil.	lippia sidoides (verbenaceae) is used in brazilian folk medicine as an antiseptic, and it is usually applied topically on skin, mucous membranes, mouth, and throat, or used for vaginal washings.	27867267
trends in clinical trials of dengue vaccine.	dengue is one of the most important vector-borne disease and an increasing problem worldwide because of current globalization trends. roughly, half the world's population lives in dengue endemic countries, and nearly 100 million people are infected annually with dengue. india has the highest burden of the disease with 34% of the global cases. in the context of an expanding and potentially fatal infectious disease without effective prevention or specific treatment, the public health value of a pr ...	27843790
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reining in angola's yellow fever outbreak.	rosa moreira tells andréia azevedo soares how angola reined in its worst yellow fever epidemic in 30 years.	27843160
functional expression and characterization of aedes aegypti dopachrome conversion enzyme.	a full-length mosquito dopachrome conversion enzyme (dce) and its truncated form lacking the last 54 carboxyl-terminal amino acid residues are expressed using a baculovirus/insect cell expression system. the full-length recombinant dce displayed multiple bands during native page with substrate staining, but only one active band was detected when the truncated recombinant dce was analyzed under identical analysis conditions. our data suggest that the last 50 some carboxyl-terminal residues are in ...	11779167
testing for context-dependence in a processing chain interaction among detritus-feeding aquatic insects.	scirtid beetles may benefit mosquitoes ochlerotatus triseriatus (say) by consuming whole leaves and leaving behind fine particles required by mosquito larvae. such interactions based on the sequential use of a resource that occurs in multiple forms are known as processing chains.models of processing chains predict that interactions can vary from commensal (0, +) to amensal (0, -), depending on how quickly resource is processed in the absence of consumers.the scirtid-o. triseriatus system was use ...	19060960
comparative characterization of aedes 3-hydroxykynurenine transaminase/alanine glyoxylate transaminase and drosophila serine pyruvate aminotransferase.	this study describes the comparative analysis of two insect recombinant aminotransferases, aedes aegypti 3-hydroxykynurenine (3-hk) transaminase/alanine glyoxylate aminotransferase (ae-hkt/agt) and drosophila melanogaster serine pyruvate aminotransferase (dm-spat), which share 52% identity in their amino acid sequences. both enzymes showed agt activity. in addition, ae-hkt/agt is also able to catalyze the transamination of 3-hk or kynurenine with glyoxylate, pyruvate or oxaloacetate as the amino ...	12220660
venezuela launches new campaign against dengue fever.		12219753
the impact of genomics on global health.	ensuring that advances in genomics are applied to the health improvement of people living in developing countries is an important contemporary challenge. in the near term, such advances are likely to alleviate infectious diseases, with longer-term benefits envisaged for chronic disorders. to ensure that benefits are shared by developing countries, attention must be paid to complex ethical, legal, social, and economic issues, as well as to public education and engagement. creative and equitable i ...	12084683
100 years of the pan american health organization.		12453801
a 3-synapse positive feedback loop regulates the excitability of an interneuron critical for sensitization in the leech.	sensitization of reflexive shortening in the leech has been linked to serotonin (5-ht)-induced changes in the excitability of a single interneuron, the s cell. this neuron is necessary for sensitization and complete dishabituation of reflexive shortening, during which it contributes to the sensory-motor reflex. the s cell does not contain 5-ht, which is released primarily from the retzius (r) cells, whose firing enhances s-cell excitability. here, we show that the s cell excites the r cells, mai ...	16571760
acetylcholinesterase genes within the diptera: takeover and loss in true flies.	it has recently been reported that the synaptic acetylcholinesterase (ache) in mosquitoes is encoded by the ace-1 gene, distinct and divergent from the ace-2 gene, which performs this function in drosophila. this is an unprecedented situation within the diptera order because both ace genes derive from an old duplication and are present in most insects and arthropods. nevertheless, drosophila possesses only the ace-2 gene. thus, a secondary loss occurred during the evolution of diptera, implying ...	17002944
infectious disease management: lessons from cuba.		18382630
a transcriptome analysis of the aedes aegypti vitellogenic fat body.	aedes (stegomyia) aegypti is an important dengue vector in tropical and subtropical zones throughout the world. a transcriptome of ae. aegypti vitellogenic fat bodies is described here. the fat body is a dynamic tissue that participates in multiple biochemical functions of intermediate metabolism. a total of 589 randomly selected cdnas were assembled into 262 clusters based on their primary sequence similarities. the putative translated proteins were classified into categories based on their fun ...	19537968
immune pathways and defence mechanisms in honey bees apis mellifera.	social insects are able to mount both group-level and individual defences against pathogens. here we focus on individual defences, by presenting a genome-wide analysis of immunity in a social insect, the honey bee apis mellifera. we present honey bee models for each of four signalling pathways associated with immunity, identifying plausible orthologues for nearly all predicted pathway members. when compared to the sequenced drosophila and anopheles genomes, honey bees possess roughly one-third a ...	17069638
expression of insulin pathway genes during the period of caste determination in the honey bee, apis mellifera.	female honeybees have two castes, queens and workers. developmental fate is determined by larval diet. coding sequences made available through the honey bee genome sequencing consortium allow for a pathway-based approach to understanding caste determination. we examined the expression of several genes of the insulin signalling pathway, which is central to regulation of growth based on nutrition. we found one insulin-like peptide expressed at very high levels in queen but not worker larvae. also, ...	17069635
mosquito-specific microrna-1890 targets the juvenile hormone-regulated serine protease jha15 in the female mosquito gut.	females of the hematophagous mosquito species require a vertebrate blood meal to supply amino acids and other nutrients necessary for egg development, serving as the driving force for the spread of many vector-borne diseases in humans. blood digestion utilizes both early and late phase serine proteases (sps) that are differentially regulated at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional level. to uncover the regulatory complexity of sps in the female mosquito midgut, we investigated involvemen ...	26488481
accelerated evolution of constraint elements for hematophagic adaptation in mosquitoes.	comparative genomics is a powerful approach that comprehensively interprets the genome. herein, we performed whole genome comparative analysis of 16 diptera genomes, including four mosquitoes and 12 drosophilae. we found more than 540 000 constraint elements (ces) in the diptera genome, with the majority found in the intergenic, coding and intronic regions. accelerated elements (aes) identified in mosquitoes were mostly in the protein-coding regions (>93%), which differs from vertebrates in geno ...	26646568
development of johnston's organ in drosophila.	hearing is a specialized mechanosensory modality that is refined during evolution to meet the particular requirements of different organisms. in the fruitfly, drosophila, hearing is mediated by johnston's organ, a large chordotonal organ in the antenna that is exquisitely sensitive to the near-field acoustic signal of courtship songs generated by male wing vibration. we summarize recent progress in understanding the molecular genetic determinants of johnston's organ development and discuss surpr ...	17891726
dna transposons and the evolution of eukaryotic genomes.	transposable elements are mobile genetic units that exhibit broad diversity in their structure and transposition mechanisms. transposable elements occupy a large fraction of many eukaryotic genomes and their movement and accumulation represent a major force shaping the genes and genomes of almost all organisms. this review focuses on dna-mediated or class 2 transposons and emphasizes how this class of elements is distinguished from other types of mobile elements in terms of their structure, ampl ...	18076328
revolutionary fever: disease and war in the lower south, 1776-1783.		18528506
photoirradiation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons with uva light - a pathway leading to the generation of reactive oxygen species, lipid peroxidation, and dna damage.	polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (pahs) are a class of genotoxic environmental contaminants. we have long been interested in determining the mechanisms by which pahs induce genotoxicity. although the metabolic activation of pahs leading to biological activities has been well studied, the photo-induced activation pathway has seldom reported. in this paper, we review the study of photoirradiation of pahs with uva irradiation results in (i) cytotoxicity and dna damage (ii) dna single strand cleavag ...	17159277
community based vector control in malindi, kenya.	community involvement has become an important component of the national malaria control strategy in kenya, resulting in the organization of groups charged with addressing mosquito and malaria-related concerns within the community.	17604514
rnai knockdown of a salivary transcript leading to lethality in the pea aphid, acyrthosiphon pisum.	abstract injection of sirna (small interfering rna) into parthenogenetic adult pea aphids (acyrthosiphon pisum) is shown here to lead to depletion of a target salivary gland transcript. the sirna was generated from double stranded rna that covered most of the open reading frame of the transcript, which we have called coo2. the coo2 transcript level decreases dramatically over a 3-day period after injection of sirna. with a lag of 1 to 2 days, the sicoo2-rna injected insects died, on average 8 da ...	20233093
genomic organization and developmental expression of glutathione s-transferase genes of the diamondback moth, plutella xylostella.	in the present study, we cloned and sequenced the entire coding regions of two glutathione s-transferase (gst) genes encoding pxgsts and pxgste from the diamondback moth, plutella xylostella l. (lepidoptera: yponomeutidae), along with their respective 5' and 3' flanking regions. the pxgsts gene was composed of four exons and three introns. based on amino acid identity with gst genes from other insects, this gene was classified as a member of the sigma class. the gene encoding pxgste had an intro ...	20233073
response of culex quinquefasciatus larvae to three insecticides.		27049713
predicting wolbachia potential to knock down dengue virus transmission.	releasing mosquitoes infected with the intracellular bacteria wolbachia is a candidate strategy for dengue control that has recently advanced to field-testing. a critical next step is to evaluate the impact of this strategy on dengue epidemiology. a recent study by ferguson and colleagues presents a mathematical framework to predict the likely effect of mosquitoes carrying wolbachia on dengue virus transmission. fitting the mathematical model to empirical data obtained with wolbachia-infected mo ...	26697448
vaccinating in disease-free regions: a vaccine model with application to yellow fever.	concerns regarding natural or induced emergence of infectious diseases have raised a debate on the pros and cons of pre-emptive vaccination of populations under uncertain risk. in the absence of immediate risk, ethical issues arise because even smaller risks associated with the vaccine are greater than the immediate disease risk (which is zero). the model proposed here seeks to formalize the vaccination decision process looking from the perspective of the susceptible individual, and results are ...	17442650
climate change and developing-country cities: implications for environmental health and equity.	climate change is an emerging threat to global public health. it is also highly inequitable, as the greatest risks are to the poorest populations, who have contributed least to greenhouse gas (ghg) emissions. the rapid economic development and the concurrent urbanization of poorer countries mean that developing-country cities will be both vulnerable to health hazards from climate change and, simultaneously, an increasing contributor to the problem. we review the specific health vulnerabilities o ...	17393341
fever and prominent arthralgia in a traveler who returned from amazonia: differentiating between dengue fever and chikungunya fever.		26157592
biocomputational characterization and evolutionary analysis of bubaline dicer1 enzyme.	dicer, an ribonuclease type iii type endonuclease, is the key enzyme involved in biogenesis of micrornas (mirnas) and small interfering rnas (sirnas), and thus plays a critical role in rna interference through post transcriptional regulation of gene expression. this enzyme has not been well studied in the indian water buffalo, an important species known for disease resistance and high milk production. in this study, the primary coding sequence (5,778 bp) of bubaline dicer (genbank: ab969677.1) w ...	25925065
erratum. topically applied aaeiap1 double-stranded rna kills female adults of aedes aegypti. journal of medical entomology 45(3):414–420.		26957585
research on climate and dengue in malaysia: a systematic review.	dengue is a climate-sensitive infectious disease. climate-based dengue early warning may be a simple, low-cost, and effective tool for enhancing surveillance and control. scientific studies on climate and dengue in local context form the basis for advancing the development of a climate-based early warning system. this study aims to review the current status of scientific studies in climate and dengue and the prospect or challenges of such research on a climate-based dengue early warning system i ...	26931438
mal de mayo.		17479908
biochemical mechanisms leading to tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase activation.	tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase (tdo) is the first enzyme in the tryptophan oxidation pathway. it is a hemoprotein and its heme prosthetic group is present as a heme-ferric (heme-fe(3+)) form that is not active. to be able to oxidize tryptophan, the heme-fe(3+) form of the enzyme must be reduced to a heme-ferrous (heme-fe(2+)) form and this study describes conditions that promote tdo activation. tdo is progressively activated upon mixing with tryptophan in a neutral buffer, which leads to an impressi ...	17212352
spatial vulnerability to dengue in a brazilian urban area during a 7-year surveillance.	this study considers the vulnerability of the urban area of the city of belo horizonte to dengue. a total number of 89,607 cases registered in the surveillance system from 1996 to 2002 were analyzed. seven epidemic waves were identified during this period. cases were grouped into 2,563 census areas, and three risk categories were proposed based on how many times each area reached a threshold established for each epidemic wave. the association between the risk categories and the socioeconomic, de ...	17243024
silencing of molt-regulating transcription factor gene, cihr3, affects growth and development of sugarcane stem borer, chilo infuscatellus.	rna interference (rnai) is a technology for conducting functional genomic studies and a potential tool for crop protection against insect pests. development of reliable methods for production and delivery of double-stranded rna (dsrna) is the major challenge for efficient pest control. in this study, chilo infuscatellus snellen (crambidae: lepidoptera) was fed with cihr3 dsrna expressed in bacteria or synthesized in vitro. the dsrna ingested by c. infuscatellus successfully triggered silencing o ...	23427912
recent advances in dengue: relevance to puerto rico.	dengue represents an increasingly important public health challenge in puerto rico, with recent epidemics in 2007, 2010, and 2012-2013. although recent advances in dengue vaccine development offer hope for primary prevention, the role of health professionals in the diagnosis and management of dengue patients is paramount. case definitions for dengue, dengue with warning signs, and severe dengue provide a framework to guide clinical decision-making. furthermore, the differentiation between dengue ...	26061055
dual lipolytic control of body fat storage and mobilization in drosophila.	energy homeostasis is a fundamental property of animal life, providing a genetically fixed balance between fat storage and mobilization. the importance of body fat regulation is emphasized by dysfunctions resulting in obesity and lipodystrophy in humans. packaging of storage fat in intracellular lipid droplets, and the various molecules and mechanisms guiding storage-fat mobilization, are conserved between mammals and insects. we generated a drosophila mutant lacking the receptor (akhr) of the a ...	17488184
definition of the minimal fragments of sti1 required for dimerization, interaction with hsp70 and hsp90 and in vivo functions.	the molecular chaperone hsp (heat-shock protein) 90 is critical for the activity of diverse cellular client proteins. in a current model, client proteins are transferred from hsp70 to hsp90 in a process mediated by the co-chaperone sti1/hop, which may simultaneously interact with hsp70 and hsp90 via separate tpr (tetratricopeptide repeat) domains, but the mechanism and in vivo importance of this function is unclear. in the present study, we used truncated forms of sti1 to determine the minimal r ...	17300223
two drosophila deg/enac channel subunits have distinct functions in gustatory neurons that activate male courtship.	trimeric sodium channels of the deg/enac family have important roles in neurons, but the specific functions of different subunits present in heteromeric channels are poorly understood. we previously reported that the drosophila deg/enac subunit ppk25 is essential in a small subset of gustatory neurons for activation of male courtship behavior, likely through detection of female pheromones. here we show that, like mutations in ppk25, mutations in another drosophila deg/enac subunit gene, nope, sp ...	22915128
the history of dengue outbreaks in the americas.	dengue is a viral disease usually transmitted by aedes aegypti mosquitoes. dengue outbreaks in the americas reported in medical literature and to the pan american health organization are described. the outbreak history from 1600 to 2010 was categorized into four phases: introduction of dengue in the americas (1600-1946); continental plan for the eradication of the ae. aegypti (1947-1970) marked by a successful eradication of the mosquito in 18 continental countries by 1962; ae. aegypti reinfesta ...	23042846
acute and subacute oral toxicity of litsea elliptica blume essential oil in rats.	litsea elliptica blume has been traditionally used to treat headache, fever, and stomach ulcer, and has also been used as an insect repellent. the acute and subacute toxicities of l. elliptica essential oil were evaluated orally by gavage in female sprague-dawley rats. for the acute toxicity study, l. elliptica essential oil was administered in doses from 500 to 4000 mg/kg (single dose), and in the subacute toxicity test, the following doses were used: 125, 250, and 500 mg/kg, for 28 consecutive ...	23024045
study of the fragmentation of arginine isobutyl ester applied to arginine quantification in aedes aegypti mosquito excreta.	it has been demonstrated that argininolysis and uricolysis are involved in the synthesis and excretion of urea in aedes aegypti female mosquitoes. to further investigate the metabolic regulation of urea in female mosquitoes, it is desirable to have a rapid and efficient method to monitor arginine (arg) concentration in mosquito excreta. thus, a procedure currently used for the identification of arg in urea cycle disorders in newborn babies was adapted to analyze arg in a. aegypti excreta. the fr ...	23019169
light-mediated control of rhodopsin movement in mosquito photoreceptors.	multiple mechanisms contribute to a photoreceptor's ability to adapt to ambient light conditions. the mosquito aedes aegypti expresses the long-wavelength rhodopsin aaop1 in all r1-r6 photoreceptors and most r8 photoreceptors. these photoreceptors alter the cellular location of aaop1 and reorganize their photosensitive rhabdomeric membranes on a daily basis. during daylight periods, aaop1 is excluded from the light-sensitive rhabdomeres and localized to multivesicular bodies (mvbs) within the ph ...	23035078
biochemical identification and crystal structure of kynurenine formamidase from drosophila melanogaster.	kfase (kynurenine formamidase), also known as arylformamidase and formylkynurenine formamidase, efficiently catalyses the hydrolysis of nfk (n-formyl-l-kynurenine) to kynurenine. kfase is the second enzyme in the kynurenine pathway of tryptophan metabolism. a number of intermediates formed in the kynurenine pathway are biologically active and implicated in an assortment of medical conditions, including cancer, schizophrenia and neurodegenerative diseases. consequently, enzymes involved in the ky ...	22690733
dengue fever in south korea, 2006-2010.		22931747
biological and molecular properties of dengue 2 strains isolated during the dhf/dss cuban epidemic, 1981.	to study some biological and molecular properties of nine denv-2 strains isolated during the 1981 cuban epidemic, temperature sensitivity, viral plaque size, the kinetic of virus replication in newborn mice inoculated by intracerebral route, the influence of ph medium on virus-cell attachment phase and the restriction enzyme pattern were studied. strains were classified in two patterns according to temperature sensitivity, plaque size, and virus replication in mouse brain and cell culture and re ...	23675036
using fluorescently labelled m13-tailed primers to isolate 45 novel microsatellite loci from the arboviral vector culex tarsalis.	culex tarsalis coquillett (diptera: culicidae) is a highly efficient arbovirus vector. spatial and temporal heterogeneity have been observed in cx tarsalis for phenotypic traits including autogeny, virus susceptibility and host preference. genetic differences between populations may in part explain these observations. using the m13-tailed primer method, we identified 45 novel polymorphic microsatellite markers from microsatellite-enriched cx tarsalis genomic libraries. the m13-tailed primer meth ...	17550440
genomic mapping of suppressor of hairy-wing binding sites in drosophila.	insulator elements are proposed to play a key role in the organization of the regulatory architecture of the genome. in drosophila, one of the best studied is the gypsy retrotransposon insulator, which is bound by the suppressor of hairy-wing (su [hw]) transcriptional regulator. immunolocalization studies suggest that there are several hundred su(hw) sites in the genome, but few of these endogenous su(hw) binding sites have been identified.	17705839
dengue fever seroprevalence and risk factors, texas-mexico border, 2004.	reported autochthonous dengue fever transmission in the united states has been limited to 5 south texas border counties since 1980. we conducted a cross-sectional serosurvey in brownsville, texas, and matamoros, tamaulipas, mexico (n = 600), in 2004 to assess dengue seroprevalence. recent dengue infection was detected in 2% (95% confidence interval [ci] 0.5%-3.5%) and 7.3% (95% ci 4.3%-10.3%) of residents in brownsville and matamoros, respectively. past infection was detected in 40% (95% ci 34%- ...	18257990
defeating dengue: a difficult task ahead.		18038050
quantification of ortholog losses in insects and vertebrates.	the increasing number of sequenced insect and vertebrate genomes of variable divergence enables refined comparative analyses to quantify the major modes of animal genome evolution and allows tracing of gene genealogy (orthology) and pinpointing of gene extinctions (losses), which can reveal lineage-specific traits.	18021399
inferring genome-scale rearrangement phylogeny and ancestral gene order: a drosophila case study.	a simple, fast, and biologically inspired computational approach for inferring genome-scale rearrangement phylogeny and ancestral gene order has been developed. this has been applied to eight drosophila genomes. existing techniques are either limited to a few hundred markers or a small number of taxa. this analysis uses over 14,000 genomic loci and employs discrete elements consisting of pairs of homologous genetic elements. the results provide insight into evolutionary chromosomal dynamics and ...	17996033
the significance of ratios of detritus types and micro-organism productivity to competitive interactions between aquatic insect detritivores.	investigations of competitive interactions emphasize non-detrital resources, even though detritus is a major component of most food webs. studies of competing species focus usually on single resource types, although consumers in nature are likely to encounter mixtures of resource types that may affect whether competition results in exclusion or coexistence. the invasive mosquito aedes albopictus is capable of excluding the native mosquito ochlerotatus triseriatus in competition for single detrit ...	17922707
surprising complexity of the ancestral apoptosis network.	apoptosis, one of the main types of programmed cell death, is regulated and performed by a complex protein network. studies in model organisms, mostly in the nematode caenorhabditis elegans, identified a relatively simple apoptotic network consisting of only a few proteins. however, analysis of several recently sequenced invertebrate genomes, ranging from the cnidarian sea anemone nematostella vectensis, representing one of the morphologically simplest metazoans, to the deuterostomes sea urchin ...	17958905
pupal productivity & nutrient reserves of aedes mosquitoes breeding in sewage drains & other habitats of kolkata, india: implications for habitat expansion & vector management.	the quality of breeding sites is reflected through the pupal productivity and the life history traits of aedes mosquitoes. using nutrient reserves and pupal productivity of aedes as indicators, the larval habitats including sewage drains were characterized to highlight the habitat expansion and vector management.	26905248
spatial distribution & physicochemical characterization of the breeding habitats of aedes aegypti in & around kolkata, west bengal, india.	dengue infection is endemic in several areas and the dengue virus is transmitted by aedes mosquitoes. thus, it becomes important to understand the breeding ecology of dengue vector and characterize the physicochemical parameters of its breeding habitat. the objective of this study was to analyze the physicochemical parameters of the breeding habitat of the dengue vector and to find out the nutrient composition of the habitat in and around kolkata, west bengal. in addition, a geographic informati ...	26905247
chikungunya outbreak in atmakur village, medak district, telangana state, india.		26905235
assessment of blood collection from the lateral saphenous vein for microfilaria counts in mongolian gerbils (meriones unguiculatus) infected with brugia pahangi.	the nih guidelines for survival bleeding of mice and rats note that using the retroorbital plexus has a greater potential for complications than do other methods of blood collection and that this procedure should be performed on anesthetized animals. lateral saphenous vein puncture has a low potential for complications and can be performed without anesthesia. mongolian gerbils (meriones unguiculatus) are the preferred rodent model for filarial parasite research. to monitor microfilaria counts in ...	26678366
primary dengue haemorrhagic fever in patients from northeast of brazil is associated with high levels of interferon-β during acute phase.	dengue is an acute febrile disease caused by the mosquito-borne dengue virus (denv) that according to clinical manifestations can be classified as asymptomatic, mild or severe dengue. severe dengue cases have been associated with an unbalanced immune response characterised by an over secretion of inflammatory cytokines. in the present study we measured type i interferon (ifn-i) transcript and circulating levels in primary and secondary denv infected patients. we observed that dengue fever (df) a ...	27223651
global distribution and environmental suitability for chikungunya virus, 1952 to 2015.	chikungunya fever is an acute febrile illness caused by the chikungunya virus (chikv), which is transmitted to humans by aedes mosquitoes. although chikungunya fever is rarely fatal, patients can experience debilitating symptoms that last from months to years. here we comprehensively assess the global distribution of chikungunya and produce high-resolution maps, using an established modelling framework that combines a comprehensive occurrence database with bespoke environmental correlates, inclu ...	27239817
drosophila by the dozen.		17634150
accuracy of dengue reporting by national surveillance system, brazil.		26812472
insights into the preservation of the homomorphic sex-determining chromosome of aedes aegypti from the discovery of a male-biased gene tightly linked to the m-locus.	the preservation of a homomorphic sex-determining chromosome in some organisms without transformation into a heteromorphic sex chromosome is a long-standing enigma in evolutionary biology. a dominant sex-determining locus (or m-locus) in an undifferentiated homomorphic chromosome confers the male phenotype in the yellow fever mosquito aedes aegypti. genetic evidence suggests that the m-locus is in a nonrecombining region. however, the molecular nature of the m-locus has not been characterized. u ...	24398378
methods for talen evaluation, use, and mutation detection in the mosquito aedes aegypti.	the generation and study of transgenic aedes aegypti mosquitoes provides an essential tool for elucidating the complex molecular biology of this important vector. within the field, genetic manipulation has surpassed the proof of principle stage and is now utilized in both applied and theoretical vector control strategies. the application of new instruments, technologies and techniques allows ever more controlled experiments to be conducted. in this text we describe microinjection of ae. aegypti ...	26443221
the fielding h. garrison lecture: "break-bone" fever in philadelphia, 1780: reflections on the history of disease.	in the autumn of 1780 an epidemic hit the city of philadelphia. the symptoms of the disease resembled those of present day dengue fever, and subsequent observers argued that the disease was in fact dengue. but was it? the question forces us to confront the challenges of retrospective epidemiology and how we examine the history of a disease. this paper examines the 1780 epidemic from two perspectives. first, it looks at evidence that the disease was dengue and examines what this tells us about th ...	27374846
evaluation of mosquito repellent activity of isolated oleic acid, eicosyl ester from thalictrum javanicum.	to evaluate the traditional use, the mosquito repellent property of thalictrum javanicum and to confirm the predicted larvicidal activity of the isolated compound, oleic acid, eicosyl ester from its aerial parts by pass software, the present study was carried out using 4th instar stage larvae of the mosquitoes, aedes aegypti (dengue vector) and culex quinquefasciatus (filarial vector). insecticidal susceptibility tests were conducted and the mortality rate was observed after 24 h exposure. the c ...	27168688
the origin and evolution of six miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements in bombyx mori and rhodnius prolixus.	miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements (mites) are a specific group of nonautonomous dna transposons, and they are distributed in a wide range of hosts. however, the origin and evolutionary history of mites in eukaryotic genomes remain unclear. in this study, six mites were identified in the silkworm (bombyx mori). five elements are grouped into four known superfamilies of dna transposons, and one represents a novel class of mites. unexpectedly, six similar mites are also present in the ...	24115603
a comparison of larval, ovitrap and mosquitrap surveillance for aedes (stegomyia) aegypti.	in brazil, the entomological surveillance of aedes (stegomyia) aegypti is performed by government-mandated larval surveys. in this study, the sensitivities of an adult sticky trap and traditional surveillance methodologies were compared. the study was performed over a 12-week period in a residential neighbourhood of the municipality of pedro leopoldo, state of minas gerais, brazil. an ovitrap and a mosquitrap were placed at opposite ends of each neighbourhood block (60 traps in total) and inspec ...	24402144
the genome of mesobuthus martensii reveals a unique adaptation model of arthropods.	representing a basal branch of arachnids, scorpions are known as 'living fossils' that maintain an ancient anatomy and are adapted to have survived extreme climate changes. here we report the genome sequence of mesobuthus martensii, containing 32,016 protein-coding genes, the most among sequenced arthropods. although m. martensii appears to evolve conservatively, it has a greater gene family turnover than the insects that have undergone diverse morphological and physiological changes, suggesting ...	24129506
circadian clock of aedes aegypti: effects of blood-feeding, insemination and rna interference.	mosquitoes are the culprits of some of the most important vector borne diseases. a species' potential as a vector is directly dependent on their pattern of behaviour, which is known to change according to the female's physiological status such as whether the female is virgin/mated and unfed/blood-fed. however, the molecular mechanism triggered by and/or responsible for such modulations in behaviour is poorly understood. clock genes are known to be responsible for the control of circadian behavio ...	24473806
genetic basis of triatomine behavior: lessons from available insect genomes.	triatomines have been important model organisms for behavioural research. diverse reports about triatomine host search, pheromone communication in the sexual, shelter and alarm contexts, daily cycles of activity, refuge choice and behavioural plasticity have been published in the last two decades. in recent times, a variety of molecular genetics techniques has allowed researchers to investigate elaborate and complex questions about the genetic bases of the physiology of insects. this, together w ...	24473804
circadian rhythms in insect disease vectors.	organisms from bacteria to humans have evolved under predictable daily environmental cycles owing to the earth's rotation. this strong selection pressure has generated endogenous circadian clocks that regulate many aspects of behaviour, physiology and metabolism, anticipating and synchronising internal time-keeping to changes in the cyclical environment. in haematophagous insect vectors the circadian clock coordinates feeding activity, which is important for the dynamics of pathogen transmission ...	24473802
aedes aegypti on madeira island (portugal): genetic variation of a recently introduced dengue vector.	the increasing population of aedes aegypti mosquitoes on madeira island (portugal) resulted in the first autochthonous dengue outbreak, which occurred in october 2012. our study establishes the first genetic evaluation based on the mitochondrial dna (mtdna) genes [cytochrome oxidase subunit i (coi) and nadh dehydrogenase subunit 4 (nd4)] and knockdown resistance (kdr) mutations exploring the colonisation history and the genetic diversity of this insular vector population. we included mosquito po ...	24473797
cell biological analysis of mosquito midgut invasion: the defensive role of the actin-based ookinete hood.	successful completion of the plasmodium lifecycle in the mosquito vector is critical for malaria transmission. it has been documented that the fate of plasmodium in the mosquito ultimately depends on a fine interplay of molecular mosquito factors that act as parasite agonists and antagonists. here we investigate whether the cellular responses of the invaded midgut epithelium can also determine the parasite fate and development. we show that the parasite hood, an actin-rich structure formed aroun ...	24428832
vector and vector-borne disease research: need for coherence, vision and strategic planning.		24428825
climate change & infectious diseases in india: implications for health care providers.	climate change has the potential to influence the earth's biological systems, however, its effects on human health are not well defined. developing nations with limited resources are expected to face a host of health effects due to climate change, including vector-borne and water-borne diseases such as malaria, cholera, and dengue. this article reviews common and prevalent infectious diseases in india, their links to climate change, and how health care providers might discuss preventive health c ...	24521625