Online applications must be received before 11:59pm on: March 3, 2026 If a date is not listed above, review the Applicant Instructions below for more details. Available Title(s): 270-NN_FACULTY - Assi...

With the rapid uptake of environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding for a wide range of conservation and management uses, there is a growing need for guidance and best practices for species identification...

Publication date: January 2026 Source: #ticks and #tick-borne Diseases, Volume 17, Issue 1 Author(s): Sara L. Gandy, Fernanda Sánchez-Rodríguez, William McLellan, Fanny Olsthoorn, Marianne C. James, Paul C.D. Johnson, Roman Biek, Hein Sprong, Manoj Fonville, Caroline Millins, Ken J. Forbes, Alan S. Bowman, Jaboury Ghazoul, Lucy Gilbert

Mosquito-borne diseases pose a growing global health threat, largely driven by the human-mediated spread of vector species beyond their native regions. Although only a few mosquito species historically established populations outside their native ranges, many have expanded rapidly in recent decades. Once established, these invaders are notoriously difficult to control, emphasizing the need for proactive identification before human-mediated spread occurs. Here, we present a framework to anticipate invasion potential for 184 mosquito species of medical importance based on their ecological, life-history, and macroecological traits. We first compiled a comprehensive dataset of 26 traits characterizing each species. We then used random forest models to relate these traits with the probability of species being introduced in new regions (before and after 1950, marking the onset of widespread trade globalization), and of establishment following introduction. Models achieved moderate to good predictive performance (AUC = 0.78-0.85) and revealed that species native to Asia and Australia, adapted to human-made breeding sites, and tolerant of climatic extremes are consistently more likely to be introduced and to establish in non-native regions. Among species with no known invasion history, we identified 24 with higher potential to become future spreaders, of which 17 also exhibit high establishment probabilities (high-risk species). These results show that invasion potential can be inferred, to some extent, from intrinsic species traits and provide a quantitative basis for proactive surveillance, enabling prioritization of species most likely to become introduced in the future.

Since 1875, the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station has earned a reputation as a leader in tick- and mosquito-borne disease research, among many other fields.

Background The mosquito gut microbiota plays a crucial role in determining its capacity to transmit harmful viruses and parasites. Accordingly, manipulating mosquito gut microbiota is a promising avenue toward reducing mosquito-borne human pathogen transmission. A successful microbial control campaign will require a thorough understanding of how bacteria are transmitted through mosquito populations. Through two parallel but complementary studies using the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti as a focal host species, we surveyed vertical transmission of bacteria from individual mothers to cohorts of offspring maintained in a closed system. Results Laboratory- and field-derived mothers deposited bacteria that support offspring development, and the relative abundance of commonly transmitted taxa correlated with offspring fitness. Maternally transmitted bacteria were detected in both larval and adult offspring, and the relative abundances of specific taxa differed between life stages. Microbiota composition in adult offspring closely resembled microbiota composition in mothers, despite dramatic shifts in the relative abundance of specific microbial community members during the larval stage. Variability in microbiota composition in offspring was also greater than variability across the population of egg-laying mothers. Eggs that underwent a period of desiccation before hatching produced larval communities dominated by endospore-forming bacteria that were rare in maternal samples. Conclusions Overall, our results demonstrate the vertical transmission of mosquito-associated microbiota across generations, including bacterial taxa that could potentially be leveraged for mosquito and mosquito-borne disease control.

Two ticks found on an 1873 electric eel specimen mark the first recorded case of ticks parasitizing a fish—but only documented just this year.

Theoretical ecologists have long leveraged empirical data in various forms to advance ecology. Recently increased volumes and access to ecological data present an expanding set of opportunities for th...

Abstract#tick-borne diseases cause a high morbidity in the USA with #Ixodes scapularis as the main vector, responsible for the majority of #tick-borne diseases in the USA. Understanding disease dynamics requires not just human disease surveillance but also surveillance of the #ticks themselves. This study collected 355 I. scapularis adults from 16 sites across Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa by drag cloths during 2017–2019. #ticks were tested using 16S sequencing and targeted PCR to identify human relevant #tick-borne disease agents. We detected 168 Borrelia burgdorferi positive, 2 Borrelia mayonii positive, 33 Anaplasma phagocytophilum Human Active positive, 1 Anaplasma phagocytophilum Variant-1 positive, 14 Ehrlichia muris positive and 5 Borrelia miyamotoi positive #ticks. These results add surveillance data on adult I. scapularis adults in the Upper Midwest.

ALT: kermit the frog is typing on a typewriter .

All active stages of Haemaphysalis vespertina sp. nov. (Acari: Ixodidae), a tick previously identified as H. leporispalustris Packard, 1869, are described from specimens collected on the vegetation and from leporids in California and Oregon. The adults of H. leporispalustris Packard, 1969 are redescribed based on type material. Adults of the two species can be distinguished by their overall size, the dorsal shape of palpal segment II, the number and shape of dorsal and ventral setae on palpal segment II, the number of spurs on coxae II, the length of setae on scutum, legs and coxae, and the pattern of scutal punctations. Phylogenetic analyses support H. vespertina as a distinct taxonomic lineage. Additional unresolved lineages within H. leporispalustris s.l. were identified, suggesting a need for further taxonomic study of leporid-associated Haemaphysalis ticks in North America.

Patterns of arthropod vector abundance and activity are key determinants of biting risk, and thus the risk of vector-borne pathogen transmission. Ticks are important vectors of animal and human pathogens worldwide. Their host-seeking activity (questing) directly influences the risk of exposure to ticks and their pathogens, but the drivers of this behaviour are poorly understood. Here, the concurrent seasonal and diel variation in Ixodes ricinus questing behaviour was investigated, for the first time, by blanket dragging every four hours over a 24-hour sampling cycle each month, from January to December 2022. A predominantly nocturnal questing activity pattern was observed, moderated by seasonal moisture availability, being most evident in months with high saturation deficit. Generalised Linear Mixed Modelling predicted that the density of questing nymphs was positively associated with darkness, and negatively associated with saturation deficit, which interacted with soil temperature. The observed seasonal questing patterns are largely consistent with published data; however this is the first study to highlight the importance of nocturnal feeding at periods of high saturation deficit. These commonly overlooked daily rhythms and environmental moderators of tick behaviour have important implications for assessing the relative risk of exposure to ticks and their pathogens for different hosts, and for estimating abundance in scientific research and surveillance.

AbstractCRISPR/Cas systems have the potential to revolutionize DNA detection of vector-borne pathogens with highly specific and user-friendly assays. One such system, named DNA Endonuclease Targeted CRISPR Trans Reporter (DETECTR), uses a guide RNA (gRNA) and Cas enzyme to bind to and cut DNA targets. Following cutting, Cas12a exhibits non-specific collateral cleavage of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA). A ssDNA reporter in the reaction allows the trans-cleavage activity to be harnessed as an amplified output signal upon recognition of the target by the Cas12a/gRNA complex. We developed a DETECTR assay to detect Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, the primary Lyme disease pathogen in the United States, in blacklegged #ticks (#Ixodes scapularis) collected from forests in southern Vermont. We compared DETECTR to gel electrophoresis of PCR-amplified products and used quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) of a different B. burgdorferi primer set for independent confirmation. We found that 123/125 of the samples had identical results for DETECTR and gel electrophoresis. Both assays identified the same 33 B. burgdorferi-positive samples and the same 90 B. burgdorferi-negative samples. On a subset of eight samples, we tested DETECTR using lateral flow test strips and obtained identical results to those obtained with the fluorescence-based DETECTR. The sensitivity of DETECTR was lower than qPCR, which detected nine additional B. burgdorferi-positive samples. When qPCR is not available, the DETECTR assay offers a robust alternative to gel electrophoresis that is more user-friendly and requires less time. Due to the highly specific nature of the assay, DETECTR provides additional confidence that a B. burgdorferi target is present.

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Abstract. Mosquito-borne diseases pose a dire threat to humanity, claiming over 700,000 lives annually. At the local scale, the interplay between several e