Project:

Best methods for identification of mosquito species for population monitoring and eDNA studies

Students:

Lauren Mei, Jody Peedikayil

Institution:

Long Island University - Brooklyn, Brooklyn

Mentors:

Christine Zolnik

Abstract:

Mosquitoes are the most important and prevalent vector of disease-causing organisms worldwide. Successful identification of mosquitoes to the species level is vital in public health monitoring of vector population abundance and distribution, identification of invasive mosquito range, and assessment of mosquito-borne disease risk. Typically, monitoring of mosquitoes species is conducted by trapping live specimens followed by identification based off of morphological characteristics which can be extremely time-consuming and requires a trained experts for positive identification. Addtioinally, some species share physical similiarities which are difficult to distinguish. For our project, we will test different primers in order to identify the best primer pair for identification of mosquitoes that are common or invasive in New York. This will include testing different different DNA targets (COX1 and 16S rDNA) as well as assessing different amplicon sizes in order to assess primers for eDNA

Poster:

Team samples: