Expression and functional role for the RYamide-2 neuropeptide in the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti

Mosquito blood feeding is the major link between pathogen transmission and the vector’s own reproduction. Vital processes directly related to blood feeding are the removal of excess fluid and digested blood bolus. Excretion is tightly regulated in insects, and recent work identified RYamide neuropeptides that may be involved in regulation of diuresis in Drosophila. Female Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus) is an excellent model for understanding the regulation of excretion. We characterized RYamide-2 transcript expression in blood-fed females by RT PCR and assayed for biological activity. Our results indicated the RYamide-2 peptide has no clear effect on diuresis but delays excretion of the blood meal.