Thinking about the host influence on the evolution of the arthropod-bacteria symbiont

Abstract

Arboviruses are considered a major public health problem, and in the absence of effective vaccines, vector population control is essential. In this scenario diseases such as Dengue, Chikungunya, and Zika appear for which the main vector is the Aedes mosquito. Therefore, the use of Wolbachia bacterium is a new and efficient control technique that blocks the virus' transmission when present in high density inside the salivary glands of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Considering the fact that living beings tend to evolve in order to improve their aptitude and consequently perpetuate their species, it is speculated that the Wolbachia bacterium - nowadays distributed in somatic and reproductive tissues of the Ae. aegypti mosquitoes - develop tropism to the germ line. This event could influence directly the efficiency of the infected mosquito's liberation technique by substituting/diminishing the wild mosquito population. In all, through differential equation models or cellular automates, it is intended to model the evolution of the Ae. aegypti-Wolbachia symbiot. (AU)