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This new discovery from Yao, Qi and colleagues shows that the Odorant Receptor Co-receptor (Orco) in Aedes albopictus plays a vital role in how the mosquitoes locate humans. Work on Orco knockout mutants suggests that Orco may influence odorant receptors' expression or stability and this was supported by electrophysiological recordings and behavioral assays, which demonstrated a marked decline in blood-feeding efficiency and decrease of human preference in females. Together, these findings reveal dynamic organization of olfactory sensory neurons during mosquito development and uncover the critical role of Orco in maintaining the integrity and function of the olfactory system, providing insights which may inform novel, next-generation vector control strategies. Yao & Qi et al, 2025.
Image Credit: pntd.0013753
Citation: (2025) PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases Issue Image | Vol. 19(11) December 2025. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 19(11): ev19.i11. https://doi.org/10.1371/image.pntd.v19.i11
Published: December 15, 2025
Copyright: © 2025 . This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
This new discovery from Yao, Qi and colleagues shows that the Odorant Receptor Co-receptor (Orco) in Aedes albopictus plays a vital role in how the mosquitoes locate humans. Work on Orco knockout mutants suggests that Orco may influence odorant receptors' expression or stability and this was supported by electrophysiological recordings and behavioral assays, which demonstrated a marked decline in blood-feeding efficiency and decrease of human preference in females. Together, these findings reveal dynamic organization of olfactory sensory neurons during mosquito development and uncover the critical role of Orco in maintaining the integrity and function of the olfactory system, providing insights which may inform novel, next-generation vector control strategies. Yao & Qi et al, 2025.
Image Credit: pntd.0013753