All Posts Tagged With: "dengue fever"

Full article: http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pbio.1000467

Excerpt:

Researchers at Vanderbilt University have identified a new family of odor sensors that mosquitoes use to locate their prey. Their discovery could help explain the puzzling mechanisms behind the mosquito’s sense of smell and further the discovery of new deterrents and traps. Funded by NIAID, the study was published in the journal PLoS Biology in August 2010.

Mosquitoes’ olfactory system, or sense of smell, is crucial for their survival. Mosquitoes use it to identify mates and locate a host. While its importance is well-accepted, the exact mechanisms behind the mosquito’s olfactory system are poorly understood.

For about ten years, scientists have been examining Anopheles gambiae, the primary vector of malaria, and studying a set of odor sensors called AgORs (A. gambiae odorant receptors). Now, the Vanderbilt team, led by Laurence Zwiebel, Ph.D., has discovered a new set of receptors, AgIRs (A. gambiaevariant ionotropic receptors) by examining the larval olfactory system.

On the Trail of a Vaccine for Lyme Disease: Yale Researchers Target Tick Saliva
Published: November 18, 2009

New Haven, Conn. — A protein found in the saliva of ticks helps protect mice from developing Lyme disease, Yale researchers have discovered. The findings, published in the November 19 issue of Cell Host & Microbe, may spur development of a new vaccine against infection from Lyme disease, which is spread through tick bites. Continued