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Michael H Reiskind-Research Interests
STATEMENT OF RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
I. Research Objectives
Broadly, I am interested in connections between vector ecology and disease. My
interests span the breadth of this interaction, and therefore scale from the landscape to the
vector habitat to the pathogen. Understanding disease vector biology has important
impacts in controlling widespread pathogens, such as malaria and dengue fever virus and
in understanding emergent pathogens, including West Nile and chikungunya viruses.
Historically, with the possible exception of yellow-fever vaccination, most of the
advances in controlling vector-borne disease have come from detailed studies of vector
ecology and vector-host interactions, yet the connections between vector ecology and
epidemiology remain under explored. One of the benefits of working with a widespread
family is that the questions I ask are amenable to diverse situations, and could be done in
almost any locality in the world, with only small adjustments for specific mosquito
species.
II. Current and Future Research
A. The ecology of invasive vectors: landscape level investigations of Aedes aegypti
and Aedes albopictus distributions in southern Florida. In today’s global economy
and changing climate, disease vectors have the opportunity to invade new regions with
unprecedented frequency, and with concomitant impacts on global human health.
Preparedness and prevention requires integrating knowledge of invasion biology and
vector ecology. To this end, Dr. L. Phil Lounibos and I are currently investigating the
spatial and temporal distributions of two important, potential disease vectors in Palm
Beach County, Florida. Aedes aegypti has been established in Florida since the colonial
period, but A. albopictus is a newly invasive species. In many parts of the historical
range of A. aegypti, Aedes albopictus has completely replaced it, successfully
establishing populations in much of the southeastern United States, and as far north as
Illinois and Maryland. However, in a few places, especially urban locations in Florida, A.
aegypti has resisted invasion, and seems to be stably persistent. To understand this
ecological phenomenon, we are determining the mechanisms of coexistence of these two
species along an urban gradient, and testing predictions of seasonal abundances of the
two species. As these two species have different capacities to transmit different
pathogens, this ecological interaction has important epidemiological consequences.
B. Breeding habitat and vectorial capacity: effects of larval competition on adult
mosquito characteristics. Larval competition, a ubiquitous phenomenon in container
breeding mosquitoes, may have important effects on adult characteristics, such as
susceptibility to infection and survival. These adult characters, in turn, determine the
vectorial capacity (the overall ability of a population of vectors to transmit disease), and
therefore the epidemic potential of a vector-borne pathogen. However, the interaction
between competition and adult characteristics has been a neglected area of research in
medical entomology. Dr. Lounibos, Dr. Barry Alto (currently at Yale University), Dr.
Michael H Reiskind-Research Interests
Christopher Mores, and I have been examining how larval competition in A. aegypti and
A. albopictus affects mosquito susceptibility to infection by dengue fever virus
(Flaviviridae), an important human pathogen. In addition, I have been investigating how
the outcomes of larval competition affect adult survival (a crucial component of vectorial
capacity) under stressful and benign conditions, comparing these two species of Aedes
mosquitoes.
C. Breeding habitat and vectorial capacity: diet diversity, larval performance and
oviposition behavior. Mosquito larvae encounter a diverse array of resource conditions
in their aquatic habitats. However, most experimental approaches with mosquitoes have
used artificial diets, or at most one leaf type as a resource base, leaving the effects of diet
quality on vectorial capacity an open question. I am examining the impact of leaf
diversity and specific leaf type on two species of container dwelling mosquitoes (Aedes
triseriatus and A. albopictus). I have extended this work to include oviposition behavior,
thus linking larval population ecology with the behavioral ecology of egg-laying females,
the primary vectors of mosquito-borne diseases. Although utilizing different mosquito
species, many of the ideas concerning optimal oviposition strategies were developed as
part of my doctoral dissertation.
D. Anticipating emerging diseases: vector competence to novel viruses. Since the
1970’s, vector-borne emerging diseases have arisen as major public health issues
throughout the world. Recent outbreaks of West Nile virus in North America and
chikungunya virus in the Indian Ocean have emphasized the need for continued research
examining the ability of these viruses to spread to new regions. As such, I have been
examining the susceptibility of Florida mosquitoes to viruses they have thus far not
encountered in Florida. Along with two PhD students and a colleague (Dr. Mores), I am
examining how mosquitoes from Florida respond to infection with chikungunya virus
(Alphaviridae). We have extended this work to examine basic biological parameters of
infection by chikungunya virus in Florida mosquitoes, including the minimum infectious
titer and the extrinsic incubation period. Through this research, I have mastered
numerous virological techniques, and I am certified to work with live material in
containment facilities (Biosafety Level-3, with respirator, on select agents).
E. Pathogen-vector interactions: impact of viral infection on mosquito survival and
fecundity. I will be investigating the harmful effects of vectoring viruses on mosquitoes
in preparation for a NIH proposal. I plan to quantify interspecfic (between A. aegypti and
A. albopictus) differences in deleterious effects of infection with dengue and
chikungunya viruses, and relate them to vectorial capacity. I am also interested in using
this approach to examine populations of mosquitoes from areas of intense disease
transmission and from areas with no recent history of disease transmission, and to
compare the mosquitoes’ interactions with dengue and chikungunya virus. The
likelihood of a disease emerging in a new region critically depends on how it interacts
with novel vectors, and this will add in our understanding of these processes.