Aedes aegypti
Overview
Aedes aegypti is the primary mosquito vector for dengue virus transmission. It is an urban-adapted species that preferentially bites humans and breeds in small standing water containers. It is the principal vector across tropical and subtropical regions where dengue is endemic or epidemic.
Key Points from Literature
- Cited as the dengue transmission vector in Garcia2010 - Asymptomatic Dengue FcγRIIa Polymorphism (background mention only; not a focus of the study).
- Cited as the primary vector in Lin2006 - Autoimmune Pathogenesis in Dengue Virus Infection and Lin2011 - Molecular Mimicry Virus Host Dengue Pathogenesis (background epidemiological context in both NCKU Taiwan reviews).
- Cited as vector background in Sungnak2025 - Distinct Immune Responses Asymptomatic Symptomatic Dengue (Thailand cohort context).
Vector biology (Guzman2016)
- Becomes infective after taking a blood meal from a viraemic patient during the viraemic window (24–48h before fever onset through ~day 5 of illness); viraemic persons — including asymptomatic individuals — can infect feeding mosquitoes (see Guzman2016 - Dengue Infection)
- Extrinsic incubation period: 5–12 days in the mosquito (blood meal to virus reaching salivary glands); generally 8–10 days; once infected, the mosquito remains infective for life
- Intrinsic incubation period (human infection to fever): 3–14 days (average 4–7 days)
- Urban-adapted; preferential human biter; breeds in small peridomestic water containers (vases, tyres, gutters); highly susceptible to indoor residual spraying and larval source reduction
Vector control programmes
- Cuba: insecticide spraying programme initiated 1981 after the DENV-2 epidemic; combined larval source reduction, adulticidal spraying, and community engagement (same three pillars as Singapore); epidemic dengue successfully controlled for ~30 years until the programme failed due to economic difficulties and re-introduction (see Guzman2016 - Dengue Infection)
- Singapore: year-round surveillance and control programme with statutory enforcement; sustained multi-decade dengue control despite high-density urban population (see Guzman2016 - Dengue Infection)
- Wolbachia (wMel): endosymbiotic bacterium suppresses DENV replication in Ae. aegypti and shortens mosquito lifespan; cytoplasmic incompatibility spreads wMel through mosquito populations without continuous releases; sustainable biological control approach (see Wolbachia)
- Sterile insect technique (SIT): releases of radiation-sterilised male Ae. aegypti to suppress wild female reproduction; field trials conducted in Asia and the Americas; requires sustained releases but leaves no genetic modification in the environment (see Guzman2016 - Dengue Infection)
Contradictions & Debates
None yet recorded.
Related Pages
Sources
- Garcia2010 - Asymptomatic Dengue FcγRIIa Polymorphism (background mention only)
- Lin2006 - Autoimmune Pathogenesis in Dengue Virus Infection (background mention)
- Lin2011 - Molecular Mimicry Virus Host Dengue Pathogenesis (background mention)
- Sungnak2025 - Distinct Immune Responses Asymptomatic Symptomatic Dengue (background mention)
- Guzman2016 - Dengue Infection (vector biology, incubation periods, control programme histories)