Parental and offspring larval diets interact to influence life history traits and dengue virus infection of offspring in Aedes aegypti

The environmental conditions experienced by parents can influence offspring phenotype along with the conditions experienced by offspring. These parental effects are clear in organisms that display parental care and are less clear in other organisms. Here we consider effects of parental and offspring larval nutrition on offspring development time, survivorship, and infection with dengue virus in Aedes aegypti, the mosquito vector of dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever and Zika. Parents were raised on either high or low larval detritus inputs with subsequent offspring being divided into two groups, one receiving high nutrients and the other low. Low nutrient females from low nutrient parents (LL) developed significantly slower than those from high nutrient parents (HL). Females from all parent by offspring nutrient treatment groups were equally likely to become infected with dengue virus at 24 hours, 3 days, and 14 days. After 14 days, high nutrient females from low nutrient parents (LH) h...