Morphotaxonomic and DNA barcoding analyses of mosquitoes collected from Chattogram Metropolitan area

Abstract

Mosquitoes are important vectors for a wide variety of pathogens including parasites. Identification of different mosquito species is crucial for their effective control. We have used the classical morphometry and DNA barcoding approach for identification of 20 mosquitoes randomly collected from different locations of Chattogram Metropolitan area of Bangladesh. Different morphological features of several body parts of the mosquitoes were examined using compound and stereo microscope. The morphological characteristics of the mosquitoes showed high similarity with the Aedes and Culex species. For DNA barcoding, genomic DNA was extracted from all of the 20 samples using commercial kits and specific primers were used for amplification of partial cytochrome oxidase (COI) gene for molecular characterization. PCR products were then sequenced followed by bioinformatics analyses. Sequence similarity based BLASTn and phylogenetic analyses (MEGA6) of the sequence indicated similarity with three different species namely A. aegypti, A. albopictus, and C. pipiens. The findings were complimentary with the morphological data and reliably characterized the mosquito species. The study showed the feasibility of using molecular tools for authentic characterization of different insects and vectors that can be used for year-long survey in any part or region of the country.