Dengue is the world’s most widespread mosquito-borne viral disease, with 100–400 million infections and half of the world’s population at risk each year. It is particularly prevalent in South America and Southeast Asia. It is caused by four antigenically distinct dengue virus serotypes (DENV1-4), which are transmitted primarily by Aedes aegypti (Ae.) mosquitoes.
DENV transmission requires active replication in both the human host and the mosquito vector. During the transmission cycle, the female mosquito takes up viral particles during a blood meal of a DENV-infected human host. The blood meal enters the midgut, where it will be digested. The viral particles enter the epithelial midgut cells and start replicating. After replicating to sufficient numbers, the viral particles cross the midgut epithelium to enter the hemocoel – the body cavity of the mosquito containing extracellular fluid called haemolymph. From here, the viral particles can enter secondary tissues for replication, such as the fat body – the main immune and metabolic organ. Eventually, the virus particles cross the salivary gland epithelium to end up in the salivary gland. When the infectious mosquito takes a blood meal from a naïve human host, it injects the DENV-infected saliva, causing the human host to become infected.
In our laboratory, we aim to uncover the cellular composition of various mosquito tissues important in establishing DENV infection in Ae. aegypti mosquitoes, such as the midgut and the fat body. To this end, we make use of single-cell techniques.
