A Simple Method for Storing Mosquito Bloodmeals for Human DNA Profiling

Abstract

A simple method for storing mosquito bloodmeal samples, which permits extraction and detection of human DNA after polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of target DNA sequences, was tested. Abdomens of bloodfed field-collected Anopheles gambiae s.l. and An. funestus mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) were directly expressed onto filter paper, air-dried and stored at room temperature. DNA was extracted and amplified at human hypervariable loci TC11, VWA and D1S80. The amplified products were separated using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, visualised by silver staining, and results compared with those from mosquitoes that had been preserved in liquid nitrogen. DNA from blooded abdomens stored on dried filter papers could be amplified with greater than 95 % success for any locus, storage temperature, mosquito species or storage duration. Collection and drying of mosquito bloodmeals directly onto filter paper appears to be a more convenient method for sample transportation and storage than the conventional method involving cryopreservation.