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The Hostest with the Mostest
But have you ever wondered which hosts Culex mosquitoes prefer?
Tara Thiemann, postdoctoral scholar in the William Reisen lab at UC Davis, will discuss host favorites when she speaks on "Survey of Culex Bloodfeeding Patterns in California" at the next UC Davis Department of Entomology seminar, set from 12:10 to 1 p.m., Wednesday, May 23 in 122 Briggs.
As a postdoctoral researcher, Thiemann works with Reisen, a noted medical entomologist, on studies investigating novel assays to identify current and emerging arboviruses in California.
"Culex tarsalis and members of the Culex pipiens complex are the primary vectors of WNV in California," Thiemann notes in her abstract. "Both mosquito species feed on a variety of avian hosts, as well as disease-susceptible mammals, such as horses and humans, so determining the bloodfeeding patterns of these mosquitoes is a critical component in understanding the transmission dynamics of WNV throughout the state."
The research project involved identifying bloodmeals from more than 2500 mosquitoes, and identifying hosts, including avian, mammalian and reptilian.
Thiemann, who received her doctorate in entomology in 2011 from UC Davis (dissertation: “Bloodfeeding Patterns of Culex tarsalis and the Culex pipiens complex in California”) says her research shows that variation in bloodfeeding patterns "primarily resulted from differences in host availability and abundance."
Several species, including the house sparrow, house finch, mourning dove, and domestic dog, proved frequent hosts throughout the state, Thiemann points out, "and highly competent corvids, Western scrub-jay, yellow-billed magpie, and American crow, were fed upon more frequently than in previous studies."
If you miss her talk, not to worry. The UC Davis Department of Entomology plans to record it and it will be posted in about two weeks on UCTV.
Tara Thiemann is researching bloodfeeding patterns of Culex mosquitoes. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Tara Thiemann working in the lab. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
New Breed of Scientists
William C. Reeves (1916-2004) would have been proud.
Remember William "Bill" Reeves? A renowned entomologist, professor and dean at UC Berkeley, he was widely regarded as the world's foremost authority on the spread and control of mosquito-borne diseases.
His legendary work continues in the form of the William C. Reeves New Investigator Award, a statewide award given to the best scientific paper submitted and presented at the annual Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California conference.
This year the winner of the Reeves New Investigator Award holds special significance.
Tara Thiemann, the 2010 recipient of the Reeves New Investigator Award, studies with Reisen, her major professor.
Thiemann, a doctoral candidate in the UC Davis Department of Entomology, won the award for her work, “Evaluating Trap Bias in Blood Meal Identification Studies,” She received $1000 and a plaque at the 78th annual MVCAC meeting, held in Sacramento.
Thiemann’s research involves analyzing the blood meals of Culex mosquitoes throughout California and identifying host prevalence and feeding patterns.
This is crucial research, as infected Culex mosquitoes transmit West Nile virus and other killer diseases.
Thiemann, who joined the Entomology Graduate Program in 2004, received her bachelor's and master's degree in biology from Truman State University, Kirksville, Mo. In 2008 she won a William Hazeltine Student Research Fellowship for her Culex mosquito studies.
Two other graduate students, also affiliated with CVEC, received second and third-place awards in the Reeves New Investigator Award competition.
M. Veronica Armijos, a doctoral student in comparative pathology, won second place with her presentation on “Distribution and Prevalence of Novel Flaviviruses in California.” She received $500.
Christy Andrade, a doctoral candidate in the Microbiology Graduate Group, won third for her presentation on "Effect of Temperature on West Nile Virus Replication in Different Host Cell Types: Potential for Altered Transmission Cycles in California." She received $250.
The students are advised by Reisen and Aaron Brault of the CVEC faculty. Brault is an adjunct associate professor in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, and a research microbiologist, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
CVEC faculty member Bruce Eldridge, emeritus professor of entomology and former director of the UC Mosquito Research Program--and also one of Reeves' colleagues--presented the awards.
Eldridge remembers collecting many a skeeter with Reeves (see photo below).Meanwhile, congratulations to the new breed of mosquito researchers (and soon-to-be UC Davis Ph.Ds): Thiemann, Armijos and Andrade.
Tara Thiemann
In the Lab
Bill Reeves
Trio of Winners
Going Green, Seeing Red
We're in a recession, but the mosquitoes aren't.
The mortgage meltdown and the resulting green swimming pools are perfect breeding sites for mosquitoes, which can transmit the deadly West Nile virus (WNV). So far this year WNV has sickened 411 Californians, killing 13.
Research just published by UC Davis research entomologist William Reisen and colleagues from Kern County should be required reading. Titled "Delinquent Mortgages, Neglected Swimming Pools and West Nile Virus, California" and published on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site, it relates that in 2007, the mortgage crisis caused a 300 percent increase in notices of delinquency in Kern County.
"This led to large numbers of neglected swimming pools, which were associated with a 276 percent increase in the number of human West Nile virus cases during the summer of 2007," the authors wrote.
They concluded "These new larval habitats may have contributed to the unexpected early season increase in WNV cases in Bakersfield during 2007 and subsequently have enabled invasion of urban areas by the highly competent rural vector Culex. tarsalis."
If you check out the California WNV Web site, you'll notice that Kern County tallied 140 of the statewide 380 human cases in 2007. (The second highest WNV-afflicted county was Los Angeles with 36.) Total WNV-related fatatlies in 2007 in California: 21.
Bottom line: unmaintained swimming pools are turning into algae-clogged ponds. It's a public health issue that taxes the mosquito and vector control districts and threatens the health and welfare of the community.
What this means is: We are our brother's keeper. We are our sister's keeper. We are our neighbor's keeper. NIMBYS (Not in My Backyard) need to be replaced by YIMBY (Yes, in My Backyard) and YLGI (Yes, Let's Get Involved).
The tiny female insect that needs a blood meal to develop her eggs is going green and we're seeing red.
Seeing Red
