Enhanced mosquito blood-finding success on parasitemic hosts: evidence for vector-parasite mutualism

The generalized hematopathology frequently found in animals infected with vector-borne pathogens may maximize transmission by enhancing the ability of vectors to locate blood in infected hosts. We tested this idea of mutualism between parasite and vector by comparing duration of probing of mosquitoes feeding on noninfected and on malaria-(Plasmodium chabaudi) or arbovirus-(Rift Valley fever virus) infected animals. We found that median duration of probing (blood location) on infected rodents was reduced by at least 1 min as compared to noninfected rodents. This enhanced ability of vectors to locate blood, possibly caused by parasite-disrupted hemostasis, may be a common feature of vector-borne diseases.