부산대학교 도서관

Aedines, well-known to exhibit asynchronous birth and development patterns, are subject to complex interactions between developmental stages that can interfere with hatchability, which is still severely tainted in mosquito transgenesis. We investigated hardening, the effects of anti-melanization, heat, flooding, food, embryo abundance and larvae stages in Aedes albopictus, a species that has not yet been targeted for transformation. Embryos placed in a moistened environment while whitish, become dark yet still soft approximately 2 hrs 10 min post-oviposition and hatched at higher rate compared to those reared in a dry environment. Soaking embryos in 4-Nitrophenyl 4-guanidinobenzoate hydrochloride (NPGB), an inhibitor of the enzyme phenoloxidase resulted in a lower hatching compared to those soaked in distilled water. Both 39dC and 42dC induced considerable hatchings with an hour exposure being the best regime. Hatching was erratic with a high rate on the initial flooding and lower rates on subsequent flooding. Food exerted a positive impact on hatching which decreased with increasing embryo density. The first instar larvae exerted an inhibition to hatching, but this impact was less perceptible at the highest density. The fourth instar larvae exhibited a significant inhibition at low densities, but they slightly stimulated hatching at the highest density. Our results should serve as a useful reference towards the production of both transgenic and laboratory strains of floodwater Aedes. Key words: Aedes albopictus, embryogenesis, hatchability, conspecific larvae, transgenesis