ENCAPSULATION OF RHABDITOID NEMATODES IN MOSQUITOES

Abstract

In third and fourth instar larvae of Aedes aegypti (L.), juveniles of the rhabditoid, DD136, penetrate the blood sinus and cardial epithelium of the proventriculus to enter the body cavity of the host, where they complete their development. By 5 hours, a thick capsule developed about many of the ensheathed immature adults of DD136 within the body cavity of A. aegypti larvae. This rapid defence reaction of the mosquito to DD136, which has both a melanin and a cellular manifestation, occurs both in the exotic mosquito A. aegypti and in the two endemic species tested, Aedes stimulans (Walker) and Aedes trichurus (Dyar). The resistance of A. stimulans to an endemic rhabditoid, possibly of the Diplogasteridae, is also similar. The histological structure of the capsule is not affected during metamorphosis in A. aegypti; however, during histogenesis of adult tissue displacement and (or) distortion of some tissues and organs may be caused by the presence of the capsule within the host's body cavity. The activity of the adult A. aegypti is normal when this distortion or displacement is minor. Though usually encapsulated DD136 are retained within the body cavity of A. aegypti during metamorphosis, sometimes they are partially or completely expelled from the host's body cavity at the time of molting.