The incidence of mosquito-borne pathogen transmission continues to significantly threaten human and animal health throughout the world. The efficacies of long-lasting insecticidal nets and indoor residual sprays are challenged by widespread resistance. These chemical control interventions are limited to indoor biting mosquitoes and often have minimal impact on outdoor biting populations. Thus, there is a need to develop alternative tools to combat mosquito-borne pathogen transmission in the wake failing products to reduce outdoor biting populations. Attractive toxic sugar bait (ATSB) stations exploit the odor-mediated behaviors of mosquitoes to effectively target outdoor biting populations. It is the goal of much current work to identify desirable sugar sources and volatile phytochemical blends to achieve high attraction as well as stimulate the optimal resting and feeding behaviors of outdoor biting mosquitoes. We have initially prepared a prototype ATSB station that reduces Aedes and Culex mosquitoes by ca. 74% over several weeks when positioned on the exterior of inhabited residences in Costa Rica. Through rapid screening, we have identified several attractive sugar sources and synthetic volatile blends that, when appended to ATSB stations, are expected increase the attraction, resting, and feeding behaviors of outdoor biting mosquitoes.

Mosquito-attractive phytochemicals for efficacious ATSB stations

ACS Fall 2021

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