Dengue Virus Turns On Mosquito Genes That Make Them Hungrier

Friday, March 30, 2012 - 22:00 in Biology & Nature

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have, for the first time, shown that infection with dengue virus turns on mosquito genes that makes them hungrier and better feeders, and therefore possibly more likely to spread the disease to humans. Specifically, they found that dengue virus infection of the mosquito's salivary gland triggered a response that involved genes of the insect's immune system, feeding behavior and the mosquito's ability to sense odors.

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