Blood‐feeding and immunogenic Aedes aegypti saliva proteins

Mosquito‐transmitted pathogens pass through the insect's midgut (MG) and salivary gland (SG). What occurs in these organs in response to a blood meal is poorly understood, but identifying the physiological differences between sugar‐fed and blood‐fed (BF) mosquitoes could shed light on factors important in pathogens transmission. We compared differential protein expression in the MGs and SGs of female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes after a sugar‐ or blood‐based diet. No difference was observed in the MG protein expression levels but certain SG proteins were highly expressed only in BF mosquitoes. In sugar‐fed mosquitoes, housekeeping proteins were highly expressed (especially those related to energy metabolism) and actin was up‐regulated. The immunofluorescence assay shows that there is no disruption of the SG cytoskeletal after the blood meal. We have generated for the first time the 2‐DE profiles of immunogenic Ae. aegypti SG BF‐related proteins. These new data could contribute to the understanding of the physiological processes that appear during the blood meal.