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Updated: Jun 24, 2026

Standard Membrane Feeding Assay for the Detection of Plasmodium falciparum Infection in Anopheles Mosquito Vectors
Published on: May 12, 2022
The temporal dynamics of Plasmodium density through the sporogonic cycle within Anopheles mosquitoes
Emma J Dawes1, Shijie Zhuang, Robert E Sinden
1Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, St Mary's Campus, Norfolk Place, London W2 1PG, UK. emma.dawes05@imperial.ac.uk
Abstract:
The impact of parasite density on malaria transmission remains unclear. We investigated sporogony temporal dynamics and the effect of parasite density on these dynamics. A series of experiments was conducted in which cages of mosquitoes were fed on blood containing a range of ookinete densities. Samples of surviving mosquitoes were dissected over time post-feeding to count oocyst and sporozoite numbers. Results reveal a humped (convex) pattern of oocyst numbers and suggest that transition rates between sporogony stages are density dependent. This has implications for the design of parasite-mosquito interface studies and the development of transmission-blocking strategies.
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