Rhythmic expression of the cycle gene in a hematophagous insect vector

Antonio CA Meireles-Filho, Paulo R Amoretty, Nataly A Souza, Charalambos P Kyriacou, Alexandre A Peixoto

A large number of organisms have internal circadian clocks that enable them to adapt to the cyclic changes of the external environment. In the model organism Drosophila melanogaster, feedback loops of transcription and translation are believed to be crucial for the maintenance of the central pacemaker. In this mechanism the cycle (or bmal1) gene, which is constitutively expressed, plays a critical role activating the expression of genes that will later inhibit their own activity, thereby closing the loop. Unlike Drosophila, the molecular clock of insect vectors is poorly understood, despite the importance of circadian behavior in the dynamic of disease transmission.