1. Infection of New- and Old-World Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) by the intracellular parasite Wolbachia: implications for host mitochondrial DNA evolution.
- Author
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Armbruster P, Damsky WE Jr, Giordano R, Birungi J, Munstermann LE, and Conn JE
- Subjects
- Aedes genetics, Africa, Animals, Asia, DNA, Mitochondrial genetics, Female, Geography, North America, South America, Aedes classification, Aedes microbiology, DNA, Mitochondrial isolation & purification, Wolbachia pathogenicity
- Abstract
Wolbachia are cytoplasmically inherited, endosymbiotic bacteria known to infect a wide variety of arthropods. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of the Wolbachia surface protein (wsp) gene was used to assay the infection of geographically disparate populations of Aedes albopictus (Skuse) by Wolbachia. Nine North American, four South American, one Hawaiian, and four Old World populations of A. albopictus were all doubly infected with both the wAlbA and wAlbB strains of Wolbachia. A 365-bp region of the wAlbA wsp gene was sequenced from seven geographically disparate host populations, and all sequences were identical. Similarly, a 474-bp region of the wAlbB wsp gene was sequenced from the same populations, and all sequences were identical. These results suggest a role for Wolbachia infection in causing the previously established pattern of low mitochondrial DNA variability, but average nuclear gene diversity, within and among populations of A. albopictus.
- Published
- 2003
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