Blood meal analysis of filarial vector culex quinquefasciatus in southern Benin

To evaluate the host-feeding preference of Cx. quinquefasciatus in southern Benin, a cross-sectional study was carried out in five neighborhoods, two at Cotonou and three at Porto-Novo, from December 2017 to March 2018. In each neighborhood, 4 inhabited houses were selected as mosquito catching sites. The collection of mosquitoes was conducted by pyrethrum spray captures (PSC) from 07:00am to 9:00am every morning and twice a week. Fifteen minutes after the spray, knocked down mosquitoes falling on white bed sheets were preserved in Eppendorf tubes labeled with an indication of the place, date of collection, and room number for further identification. Each collected mosquito was identified and classified as Culicinae or Anophelinae after an examination on a binocular microscope and identification keys. Finally, host-feeding preference of Cx. quinquefasciatus was determined based on serological characteristics of the plasma using immunoenzymatic ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay) technique on fed Cx. quinquefasciatus collected. From our investigation, a total of 978 mosquitoes were collected during the study period in the different areas with Culex quinquefasciatus as the most predominant specie. The majority of mosquitoes collected from neighborhoods of Cotonou and Porto Novo tested for blood meal revealed that 85.71% of the collected mosquitoes fed on human and 5.72% on various animals (beef, sheep and pork). The results of this study confirm the anthropophagic behavior of Cx. quinquefasciatus which tend to feed more on human than animal. This feeding preference is an important result to the implementation of effective strategies to control Cx. quinquefasciatus.