The Lambrechts Lab

A targeted amplicon sequencing panel for cost-effective high-throughput genotyping of Aedes aegypti The mosquito Aedes aegypti is the primary vector for several medically significant arboviruses, including dengue, Zika, chikungunya, and yellow fever. Studying the genetic diversity of Ae. aegypti is ...

🚨 New preprint alert! We have developed a targeted amplicon sequencing panel for Aedes aegypti. We believe it is a powerful and cost-effective tool for studying #mosquito #population #genetics. Curious how it matches up to WGS? Check out our preprint to find out! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

2 job adverts on a NERC project w myself + @darrenobbard.bsky.social on “What determines the virome: ecology and the environment, evolution, or species history?” early 2026 in
@uniexecec.bsky.social
- Postdoc: jobs.exeter.ac.uk/hrpr_webrecr...
- RA: jobs.exeter.ac.uk/hrpr_webrecr...
Pls share!

Mosquito Genetics May Explain Why Zika Virus Outbreaks Are Rare in Africa – But Climate Change Could Shift the Balance - High Meadows Environmental Institute A new study reveals that Africa’s low rates of Zika virus outbreaks may be due to a surprising factor: the genetic makeup of local mosquito populations. Research by scientists at the High Meadows Envi...

A study by researchers at Princeton, @pasteur.fr, and @ucsandiego.bsky.social reveals that Africa’s low rates of Zika virus outbreaks may be due to a surprising factor: the genetic makeup of local mosquito populations.

Huge thanks to @gonzalezlabbcn.bsky.social for her invaluable contribution as a member of Alexander Bergman's PhD jury and for the stimulating discussions that ensued. It was a great opportunity to chat about #transposons in #mosquitoes and #Drosophila!

WOW! Systematic testing of 2 #Wolbachia strains for their ability to block transmission of 60 genetically diverse #DENV isolates in #mosquitoes shows substantial heterogeneity and suggests potential long-term selection risks in Wolbachia-based control interventions.

Genetic study of malaria-carrying mosquitoes tracks evolution of insecticide resistance | Natural History Museum It crucially also reveals promising genetic targets for potential control.

www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/new...

Mosquitoes that have been in the collection for nearly a hundred years are helping us in dealing with an even older but also current problem - malaria

@sangerinstitute.bsky.social @nhm-london.bsky.social

How the yellow fever mosquito conquered the world Aedes aegypti further adapted to life around humans when it arrived in the Americas, study of hundreds of mosquito genomes reveals

How the yellow fever mosquito conquered the world | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...

Genomic clues into the spread of deadly mosquitoes Ancient and more recent human interactions shape mosquito vector evolution

Genomic clues into the spread of deadly mosquitoes | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

1206 genomes reveal origin and movement of Aedes aegypti driving increased dengue risk The emergence and global expansion of Aedes aegypti puts more than half of all humans at risk of arbovirus infection, but the origin of this mosquito and the impact of contemporary gene flow on arbovi...

1206 genomes reveal origin and movement of Aedes aegypti driving increased dengue risk | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/....

A seminal paper of great interest to all. Great work and congratulations to the team!

Genomic diversity of the African malaria vector Anopheles funestus Anopheles funestus s.s. is a major human malaria vector across Africa. To study its evolution, especially under vector control pressure, we sequenced 656 modern specimens (collected 2014 to 2018) and ...

Striking and frightening 😒 "They found multiple instances of insecticide-resistance variants in this malaria vector, although most of these weren’t shared with museum specimens collected as recently as 1967, suggesting rapid emergence"
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

ScienceAdviser: Mosquitoes seem to love hedonists Today in Science and science: How corpse flowers make a big stink, a rocky start for the ocean, and more

ScienceAdviser: Mosquitoes seem to love hedonists | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...

Chikungunya : forte hausse des cas autochtones en métropole, Santé publique France appelle à la vigilance face aux moustiques tigres L’implantation du moustique tigre dans 81 départements métropolitains inquiète les autorités, qui redoutent une propagation accrue du chikungunya et d’autres maladies vectorielles cet automne.

Chikungunya : forte hausse des cas autochtones en métropole, Santé publique France appelle à la vigilance face aux moustiques tigres

How billions of hacked mosquitoes and a vaccine could beat the deadly dengue virus Outbreaks of dengue are killing thousands of people in South America each year and getting worse. Brazil hopes to turn the tide with a home-grown vaccine and an army of mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia bacteria.

Brazil hopes to turn the tide of dengue with a home-grown vaccine and an army of mosquitoes

go.nature.com/41VWT1V

Mosquito-borne viruses surge in a warming Europe Chikungunya cases break records in France; West Nile virus appears near Rome

Mosquito-borne viruses surge in a warming Europe | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...

@elodiecouderc.bsky.social is on 🔥 this month ! Our review (which the literature really missed, imho) giving an historical perspective on the methods used to study of mosquito-virus interactions in now online at @cp-trendsmicrobiol.bsky.social. Check it ou here: www.cell.com/trends/micro...

Virology lost one of his monuments, David Baltimore. To learn more about him and his contributions, I recommend (re)-listening to this great TWIV episode : www.microbe.tv/twiv/twiv-10...

New #review out 🚨 for mosquito enthusiasts 🦟 !

Have you ever questioned the approach you routinely use to investigate #mosquito-virus #interactions? ⬇️

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

YouTube video by Institut Pasteur La dengue aux commandes

Does #dengue virus hijack #mosquitoes' brain? Study led by Felix Hol @pasteur.fr discovered that infected mosquitoes take smaller blood meals. As a result, they bite more often, and potentially infect infect more people.

(video in French with English subtitles available)
youtu.be/2u_qckfAQa4?...

Blood, sweat, and beers: investigating mosquito biting preferences amidst noise and intoxication in a cross-sectional cohort study at a large music festival https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.21.671470v1

Aedes aegypti VLG-1 challenges the assumed antiviral nature of Vago genes - BMC Biology Background Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) such as dengue virus (DENV) and Zika virus (ZIKV) pose a significant threat to global health. Novel approaches to control the spread of arboviruses foc...

🚀 Excited to share (with a little delay) my first first-author publication on #Vago genes in #mosquitoes! 🦟 🦠 Have a look to see how we questioned a mosquito immunity dogma and challenged the existing understanding of Vago-like genes as antiviral factors ⬇️

bmcbiol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....

Our discovery suggests a mechanistic link between DENV susceptibility and insecticide resistance. Cytochrome P450 enzymes, known drivers of such resistance in mosquitoes, add complexity to this interaction and highlight new research avenues.

Through infection assays, transcriptomics, gene silencing, and transgenesis, we have identified the CYP4G15 gene as a key player. Variants in its promoter significantly impact DENV infection in Ae. aegypti, marking the 1st definitive identification of genetic variants linked to DENV susceptibility.

Despite decades of research focusing mostly on immune genes, causal genetic variants for DENV susceptibility in mosquitoes have been hard to pin down. Our work instead spotlights how metabolic pathways—specifically, cytochrome P450 enzymes—play a key role in shaping mosquito-virus interactions.

Dengue virus susceptibility in Aedes aegypti linked to natural cytochrome P450 promoter variants Nature Communications - Genetic factors affecting Aedes aegypti susceptibility to dengue virus infection aren’t well studied. Here the authors show that a cytochrome P450 gene, typically...

🦟🦠 Check out our latest article in @natcomms.nature.com on the genetic basis of #dengue virus susceptibility in #mosquitoes! Collaborative work brillantly led by @merklinglab.bsky.social and @elodiecouderc.bsky.social @pasteur.fr and primarily supported by @agencerecherche.bsky.social rdcu.be/eBbg7

📣 I'm recruiting a postdoc researcher to join my team for a project on mosquito-specific viruses and host interactions. Peep the job description & how to apply below. Perfect for soon-to-be or recent PhD graduates in mosquito vector biology 🦟 or arbovirology 🦠
🗓️ Application deadline 31 August 2025

Moustiquaire ou citronnelle ? Comment se protéger vraiment des moustiques

Moustiquaire ou citronnelle ? Comment se protéger vraiment des moustiques

Metabolic homeostasis favors tolerance to persistent viral infection in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes The mosquito Aedes aegypti harbors a wide range of persistent viral infections, including both medically important arboviruses and insect-specific viruses (ISVs). However, the mechanisms underpinning ...

How can mosquitoes tolerate viral infections?

In our latest preprint we show that mosquitoes that can regulate their metabolism after infection can tolerate viral infections better.

Thanks to all the authors for all your ideas and contributions

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Mosquito immune cells enhance dengue and Zika virus infection in Aedes aegypti Nature Communications - Infection of mosquito immune cells by dengue and Zika virus enhances the spread of virus infection to mosquito tissues, such as the salivary glands, to promote virus...

Despite all the shit going on, we have to celebrate our victories. New publication with @entomososwin.bsky.social and @vectorimmunity.bsky.social showing that hemocytes play a central role in disseminating flaviviruses to secondary tissues potentially functioning as a Trojan Horse(TBD)
rdcu.be/euj4g

Interested in using phylogenetics to study arboviruses? Our new review in @natrevgenet.nature.com‬ by @viralverity.bsky.social‬, @sdellicour.bsky.social‬, and Marta Giovanetti has you covered!

📖 👉 rdcu.be/epH2U

Short 🧵

Just few days left to apply to one of these postdoc positions in my infectious disease modelling Unit at @pasteur.fr in Paris!