Membrane Feeding Assay to Determine the Infectiousness of Plasmodium vivax Gametocytes.

The evaluation of Plasmodium vivax gametocyte infectiousness by the membrane feeding assay is herein described. While P. vivax cannot be cultured and different parasite isolates may infect mosquitoes at different rates, the protocol described in this chapter identifies critical parameters to be considered when performing the assay such as methods for the preparation of the mosquitoes, the size of the blood cup, and the blood volume used. In previous studies the data have shown that the membrane feeding assay is useful for studies of parasite biology, and the effects of transmission blocking drugs and vaccines.