Treatment of Mosquito Larvae and Adults with Radioactive Phosphorus
Studies were made to determine how to introduce radioactive phosphoric acid (P/sup 32/) into both larvae and adult mosquitoes in amounts that would be detectable with radioactive measuring devices. Aedes sticticus (Meig.) and A. vexans (Meig.) mosquitoes gave 544 to 897 cpm above background after they had been allowed to feed on the blood of rats that had received 0.375 millicurie of P/ sup 32/ in aqueous solution intraperitoneally 24 hours earlier. In three dissected specimens an average of 72 per cent of the radioactivity was found in the abdomen and 4 per cent in the legs. Second- and third-instar larvae of Culex tarsalis (Coq.) reared in water having an unknown concentration of P/sup 32/ had radioactivity ranging from 184 to 417 cpm. Fifteen per cent of this radioactivity was present in the legs and 45 per cent in the abdomen. Aedes sticticus females fed on water having an unknown concentration of P/sup 32/ gave readings of 577 to 1,192 cpm 1 to 13 days later. The legs had approximately 9 per cent and the abdomens 41 per cent of the total radioactivity. Aedes sticticus and A. vexans adults reared from the second-stage larvae in water containing 0.05 mu c of P/sup 32/ per milliliter gave average readings of 41,147 cpm for females and 39,072 cpm for males. In later tests dosages of 0.01, 0.001, and 0.0001 mu c per milliliter gave 14,911, 1,612, and 522 cpm, respectively, for the females. It is suggested that a concentration of approximately 0.0001 mu c of radioactive phosphoric acid per milliliter may be a practical dosage for the treatment of larvae in flight studies of adults. Since adults may be readily tagged by feeding them sugar solutions containing small amounts of P/sup 32/, the use of this method may be desirable in many studies.
- Research Organization:
- Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- NSA Number:
- NSA-17-010423
- OSTI ID:
- 4712029
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Economic Entomology, Vol. 44, Issue 1; Other Information: Orig. Receipt Date: 31-DEC-63; ISSN 0022-0493
- Country of Publication:
- Country unknown/Code not available
- Language:
- English
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