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Distribution and genetic structure of Aedes japonicus japonicus populations (Diptera: Culicidae) in Germany

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Abstract

In recent years, the number of imported cases of arthropod-borne diseases in Europe, such as dengue fever, has increased steadily, as did the emergence and distribution of invasive insect vectors. Consequently, the risk of disease spreading into previously unaffected regions through invasive mosquitoes is also increasing. One example of an invasive mosquito is Aedes japonicus japonicus (A. j. japonicus), which spread from its original habitat in Japan to North America and Europe. This species has been shown to act as a vector for Japanese encephalitis and West Nile viruses. In Europe, A. j. japonicus has been detected in Switzerland, Belgium, Slovenia, and Germany, where it has become a resident species. Here, we describe the recent spread and genetic structure of A. j. japonicus populations in Germany. By monitoring the species in Baden-Württemberg in 2011 and 2012, we observed a considerable enlargement of the infested area from 54 municipalities in 2011 to 124 municipalities in 2012. To elucidate the colonization of Europe by A. j. japonicus, seven microsatellite loci were studied in 106 individuals sampled in Germany and Switzerland in 2012. The same markers were genotyped in 31 North American and 26 Japanese specimens. Population genetic analyses indicated that A. j. japonicus in Baden-Württemberg and North Rhine-Westphalia represented two genetically distinct populations with FST—values of 0.073–0.152, suggesting that they originated from two independent introduction events in the past. These results are of particular interest in light of vectorial variability for the transmission of viruses and other pathogens in Europe.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Dr. Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit and Stephanie Jansen for the productive discussions and critical reading of the manuscript. This work was financially supported by the Leibniz Association, grant number SAW-2011-BNI-3, and the German Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) through the Federal Environment Agency (UBA), grant number FKZ371148404.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany

    Katrin Huber, Martin Rudolf & Egbert Tannich

  2. Department for Molecular Medicine, Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany

    Kathrin Schuldt

  3. German Mosquito Control Association (KABS/GFS), Waldsee, Germany

    Katrin Huber & Norbert Becker

  4. University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany

    Katrin Huber & Norbert Becker

  5. University of Bonn Medical Centre, Bonn, Germany

    Marco Marklewitz & Sandra Junglen

  6. Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA

    Dina M. Fonseca

  7. University of Zurich, Zurich, ZH, Switzerland

    Christian Kaufmann

  8. National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan

    Yoshio Tsuda

  9. Bundeswehr Hospital Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Andreas Krüger

  10. Hamburg and German Centre for Infection Research, partner site Hamburg-Luebeck-Borstel, Hamburg, Germany

    Egbert Tannich

  11. Research Group Entomology, Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Bernhard-Nocht-Str. 74, 20359, Hamburg, Germany

    Stefanie C. Becker

Authors
  1. Katrin Huber
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  2. Kathrin Schuldt
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  3. Martin Rudolf
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  4. Marco Marklewitz
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  5. Dina M. Fonseca
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  6. Christian Kaufmann
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  7. Yoshio Tsuda
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  8. Sandra Junglen
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  9. Andreas Krüger
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  10. Norbert Becker
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  11. Egbert Tannich
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  12. Stefanie C. Becker
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Stefanie C. Becker.

Additional information

Katrin Huber and Kathrin Schuldt contributed equally to this work.

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Huber, K., Schuldt, K., Rudolf, M. et al. Distribution and genetic structure of Aedes japonicus japonicus populations (Diptera: Culicidae) in Germany. Parasitol Res 113, 3201–3210 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-014-4000-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-014-4000-z

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