The Role of Mosquito Behavior in the Transmission of Vector-Borne Diseases

Malaria, dengue, and Zika virus transmitted by mosquitoes are still a threat to global health because of the behavioral plasticity of the vectors that improve pathogen dissemination.This work aims at understanding the behavioral and neural processes of pathogen transmission, particularly host-seeking and feeding behaviors that are regulated by sensory changes and neural plasticity.In behavioral assays, we found that probing frequency, feeding duration, and host attraction efficiency increased in response to pathogens, as confirmed by neurophysiological analysis using electroantennography (EAG) and two-photon calcium imaging, which showed a 38% increase in sensory responses.Countermeasures were designed to target these mechanisms using microbiome manipulation and CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing to achieve 97.6% vertical transmission stability and a 26.3% decrease in pathogen transmission rates.These outcomes present a behavior-centered model that uses neurophysiological characterization, microbial modulation, and gene modification to develop vector control approaches that are biosafe and easily reproducible.This study offers mechanistic understanding of behavior-driven transmission dynamics and identifies tangible intervention points for interrupting disease cycles, thereby paving the way for the development of the next generation of strategies to prevent vector-borne diseases.