Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42420966›Full record

ArticleBMC biology2026

The evolution of reproduction without blood feeding in an invasive vector mosquito Aedes albopictus.

Samantha L Sturiale, Mara Heilig, Matthew L Aardema, Luciano V Cosme, Margaret Corley, Sarah Marzec, Micah Hamilton, Daniel Vizcarra, Luke T Anderson, Christina M Holzapfel and 4 more

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PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC biology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Samantha L Sturiale *Department of Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA.
Mara Heilig *Department of Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA.
Matthew L AardemaDepartment of Biology, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, USA.
Luciano V CosmeDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
Margaret CorleyDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
Sarah MarzecDepartment of Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA.
Micah HamiltonDepartment of Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA.
Daniel VizcarraDepartment of Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA.
Luke T AndersonDepartment of Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA.
Christina M HolzapfelInstitute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA.
William E BradshawInstitute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA.
Megan E MeutiDepartment of Entomology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
Adalgisa CacconeDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
Peter A ArmbrusterDepartment of Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA. paa9@georgetown.edu.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMosquitoes transmit a diverse range of deadly pathogens, including dengue and Plasmodium spp., when they consume the blood of vertebrate hosts in order to nutritionally provision their eggs. However, mosquito species from multiple genera have independently evolved the ability to produce eggs without blood. The molecular and physiological processes underlying the evolution of blood-independent reproduction are largely unresolved, in part because the two most well-studied models of mosquito reproductive physiology and genetics are obligate blood feeders. Herein, we integrate life-history, genomics, and gene expression to identify physiological processes and candidate genes associated with the evolution of blood-independent reproduction in a non-model vector mosquito, Aedes albopictus.

resultsRelative to a blood-dependent (control) population, females selected for blood-independent reproduction exhibit a longer larval development period and larger adult size, implying increased nutrient sequestration at the larval stage. Additionally, blood-independent larvae exhibit higher expression of amino acid and lipid storage genes (hex1.1 and lsd-2) relative to blood-dependent larvae. Linkage clusters and F

conclusionsMultiple lines of evidence indicate that larval nutrient sequestration and altered regulation of vitellogenesis have contributed to the rapid evolution of blood-independent reproduction in Ae. albopictus. Overlapping evidence also identifies proposed candidate genes affecting these processes. These results provide a foundation for developing novel paradigms to suppress disease transmission by vector mosquitoes.

Indexed as

AedesBiological EvolutionMosquito VectorsAnimalsFemaleLarvaReproductionAedes albopictusArbovirus transmissionAutogenyBlood-independent reproductionReproductive physiologyVector geneticsVitellogenesis

Identifiers

PMID42420966
PMCPMC13632266

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.