A physiological time analysis of the duration of the gonotrophic cycle of Anopheles pseudopunctipennis and its implications for malaria transmission in Bolivia.

Background: The length of the gonotrophic cycle varies the vectorial capacity of a mosquito vector and therefore its exact estimation is important in epidemiological modelling. Because the gonotrophic cycle length depends on temperature, its estimation can be satisfactorily computed by means of physiological time analysis.

Methods: A model of physiological time was developed and calibrated for Anopheles pseudopunctipennis, one of the main malaria vectors in South America, using data from laboratory temperature controlled experiments.

Laboratory colonization of Anopheles pseudopunctipennis (Diptera: Culicidae) without forced mating.

Anopheles pseudopunctipennis is one of the main malaria vectors in the Andean regions of South America. Few experimental data exist on this species because it is not very available in laboratories due to its eurygamic status that makes colony maintenance difficult. Indeed, individuals do not mate in the confined space of insectary cages.