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. 2015 Apr 22;10(4):e0122716.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0122716. eCollection 2015.

Heritability of attractiveness to mosquitoes

G Mandela Fernández-Grandon  1 , Salvador A Gezan  2 , John A L Armour  3 , John A Pickett  4 , James G Logan  1
Affiliations

Heritability of attractiveness to mosquitoes

G Mandela Fernández-Grandon et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Female mosquitoes display preferences for certain individuals over others, which is determined by differences in volatile chemicals produced by the human body and detected by mosquitoes. Body odour can be controlled genetically but the existence of a genetic basis for differential attraction to insects has never been formally demonstrated. This study investigated heritability of attractiveness to mosquitoes by evaluating the response of Aedes aegypti (=Stegomyia aegypti) mosquitoes to odours from the hands of identical and non-identical twins in a dual-choice assay. Volatiles from individuals in an identical twin pair showed a high correlation in attractiveness to mosquitoes, while non-identical twin pairs showed a significantly lower correlation. Overall, there was a strong narrow-sense heritability of 0.62 (SE 0.124) for relative attraction and 0.67 (0.354) for flight activity based on the average of ten measurements. The results demonstrate an underlying genetic component detectable by mosquitoes through olfaction. Understanding the genetic basis for attractiveness could create a more informed approach to repellent development.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Female Aedes aegypti mosquito.
Female A. aegypti mosquitoes used in the experiment to test attractiveness to odours from the hands of identical and non-identical twins.
Fig 2
Fig 2. The Y-tube olfactometer.
Olfactometry equipment used to test the behavioural response of female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes to odours from the hands of identical and non-identical twins. The Y-tube formed of plexiglass with a 70 mm internal diameter allowing the free flight of mosquitoes within the airflow.
Fig 3
Fig 3. Scatter plots for (A) relative attraction and (B) flight activity for dizygotic twins (open circles) and monozygotic twins (closed circles).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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