Gene silencing in adult Aedes aegypti mosquitoes through oral delivery of double-stranded RNA

The induction of the naturally occurring phenomenon of RNA interference (RNAi) to study gene function in insects is now common practice. With appropriately chosen targets, the RNAi pathway has also been exploited for insect control, typically through oral delivery of dsRNA. Adapting current methods to deliver foreign compounds, such as amino acids and pesticides, to mosquitoes through sucrose solutions, we tested whether such an approach could be used in the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti. Using a non-specific dsRNA construct, we found that adult Ae. aegypti ingested dsRNA through this method and that the ingested dsRNA can be recovered from the mosquitoes post-feeding. Through the feeding of a species-specific dsRNA construct against vacuolar ATPase, subunit A, we found that significant gene knockdown could be achieved at 12, 24 and 48 h post-feeding.