Max Planck

In the Mosquito Reproductive Biology Group, we currently have the following research lines:

Sperm storage in Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus females

Sperm storage is a process critical for fertility. However, the stages of this process are poorly defined in Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus. We are defining the steps of sperm storage in these species—entry into, maintenance within, and the release of sperm from the storage organs.

The Aedes aegypti spermethecal secretory cell transcriptome

We are examining gene expression from secretory cells of the spermathecae, the sperm storage organs of the female reproductive tract. The products of these cells are likely important for optimal fertility and will identify targets for the suppression of fertility in this disease vector.

The reproductive microbiome of Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus

We are examining changes in bacterial composition that occur in reproductive tissues of Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus females during cycles of blood-feeding and egg-laying.

Precopulatory mating behaviors in Anopheles albimanus

We are dissecting the acoustics of mating in Anopheles albimanus to determine how this mosquito finds and attracts a mate by characterizing acoustics produced by males and females during flight when exposed to individuals of the opposite sex.