Genome-wide profiling of diel and circadian gene expression of the malaria vector Anopheles gambiae. Anopheles gambiae

Anopheles gambiae, the primary African malarial mosquito, exhibits numerous behaviors that are under diel and circadian control, including locomotor activity, swarming, mating, host seeking, eclosion, egg laying and sugar feeding. However, little has been performed to elucidate the molecular basis for these daily rhythms. To study how gene expression is globally regulated by diel and circadian mechanisms, we have undertaken a DNA microarray analysis of A. gambiae head and bodies under 12:12 light:dark cycle (LD) and constant dark (DD, free-running) conditions. Zeitgeber Time (ZT) with ZT12 defined as time of lights OFF under the light:dark cycle, and ZT0 defined as end of the dawn transition. Circadian Time (CT) with CT0 defined as subjective dawn, inferred from ZT0 of the previous light:dark cycle. Overall design: Adult mated but non-blood fed female mosquito heads and bodies under 12:12 light:dark cycle (LD) and constant dark (DD) conditions were collected every 4 hr to generate 48 hr gene expression profiles, and samples were processed with Affymetrix full genome microarrays. Downstream analysis identified genes with ~24hr rhythmic expression profiles.