Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Anopheles funestus in western Kenya Based on Mitochondrial DNA Marker mtDNA-COII

Isaiah Debrah
* ORCID logo ,
Kevin O. Ochwedo
ORCID logo ,
Wilfred O. Otambo
,
Maxwell G. Machani
,
Edwin O. Magomere
ORCID logo ,
Shirley A. Onyango
,
Daibin Zhong
* ORCID logo ,
Linda Eva Amoah
ORCID logo ,
Andrew Karanja Githeko
,
Yaw Asare Afrane
,
Guiyun Yan
Version 1 : Received: 26 January 2023 / Approved: 27 January 2023 / Online: 27 January 2023 (06:46:32 CET)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Debrah, I.; Ochwedo, K.O.; Otambo, W.O.; Machani, M.G.; Magomere, E.O.; Onyango, S.A.; Zhong, D.; Amoah, L.E.; Githeko, A.K.; Afrane, Y.A.; Yan, G. Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Anopheles funestus in Western Kenya Based on Mitochondrial DNA Marker COII. Insects 2023, 14, 273. Debrah, I.; Ochwedo, K.O.; Otambo, W.O.; Machani, M.G.; Magomere, E.O.; Onyango, S.A.; Zhong, D.; Amoah, L.E.; Githeko, A.K.; Afrane, Y.A.; Yan, G. Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Anopheles funestus in Western Kenya Based on Mitochondrial DNA Marker COII. Insects 2023, 14, 273.

Abstract

The mitochondrial marker, cytochrome oxidase subunits II gene (mtDNA-COII) was employed to assess the genetic structure and diversity of Anopheles funestus, a very important malaria vector in Africa, that adapt and colonize different ecological niches in western Kenya. Mosquitoes were collected using mechanical aspirators in four sites (Bungoma, Port Victoria, Kombewa and Migori) in western Kenya. Following morphological identification, PCR was used to confirm species. The mtDNA-COII gene was amplified, sequenced and analyzed to determine genetic diversity and population structure. A total of 126 (Port Victoria-38, Migori-38, Bungoma-22 and Kombewa-28) sequences of mtDNA-COII were used for population genetic analysis. Anopheles funestus had high haplotype diversity (Hd= 0.97 to 0.98) but low nucleotide diversity (π =0.004 to 0.005). The neutrality test revealed significant (p<0.05) negative Tajima’s D and Fs values indicating population expansion with an excess of low-frequency variation due to evolutionary forces across all sites. No genetic differentiation or structure was observed across the sites (Fst = -0.01) and a high level of gene flow (Gamma St, Nm = 17.99 to 35.22) was observed among the populations. Population expansion suggests the high adaptability of this species to various ecological requirements hence sustaining its vectorial capacity and malaria transmission.

Keywords

Anopheles funestus; western Kenya; mtDNA-COII; genetic diversity; gene flow

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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