Microsatellite genotypes of Aedes japonicus collected in Belgium and Germany

Seven polymorphic microsatellite loci were scored in 292 specimens of Ae. japonicus collected in Belgium and Germany to investigate the population genetic structure of this invasive. The objectives of the study were to determine (i) if the mosquito specimens collected along the Belgian border were introduced from the nearby existing West German population, and (ii) if the population at Natoye (Belgium) resulted from a new introduction event and/or from a few undetected specimens that escaped elimination.

Methods
Aedes japonicus specimens were collected in the framework of different successive projects undertaken to monitor the introduction and establishment of exotic mosquito species in Belgium and Germany. DNA was extracted from legs, abdomens or eggs using either the NucleoSpin® Tissue DNA extraction kit (Macherey-Nagel) or the QIAamp DNA Micro kit (Qiagen). Specimens were genotyped for seven microsatellite loci developed for Ae. japonicus, using the two multiplexes as presented in Widdel et al. 2005 (sized on a 3130XL Genetic Analyzer, using GeneScanTM 500 LIZ as size standard). Microsatellite length variation visualization and determination was performed using Geneious® R11.