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The Laboratory of LJ Zwiebel

Vanderbilt University/Vanderbilt University Medical Center

The research focus of the laboratory is the study of the molecular genetics, genomics and neurobiology of olfaction (smell) and its role in behavioral processes in mosquito disease vectors and, more recently, two species of eusocial ants..

We are examining the molecular events of olfaction as this sensory modality predominates most of the relevant behaviors in ants as well as host preference and several other behaviors in mosquitoes to thereby make significant impact to vectorial capacity. Working together with several outstanding collaborators here at Vanderbilt and around the world, we are interested in understanding the mechanisms by which insects transduce chemical signals from their environment into neuronal activity and ultimately behavior. Within Anopheles, we focus specifically on the genetic basis for anthropophily- the characteristic preference for human biting that significantly drives malaria transmission by An. gambiae. To address this, we use molecular, bioinformatics and functional based approaches to study genes and their products that are active in olfactory signal transduction as well as conduct a range of behavioral and physiological studies to understand these processes in the mosquito itself. Knowledge from these studies will be used to adapt new approaches for modifying mosquito behaviors so as to reduce the close encounters between vectors and humans and thereby lower the transmission of malaria and other vector borne diseases.

We have recently extended our interests to the study of the chemosensory elements of pheromone-based eusocial interactions in two divergent species (Camponotus floridanus and Harpegnathos saltator) of ants. In this context, we have extended our studies on chemosensory-driven behaviors of mosquitoes to ants to take advantage of the large body of work that suggests that behavior and social organization in ants are largely modulated by chemosensory communication, often encoded by complex mixtures of volatile cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs). Ants are extremely interesting because they exhibit the sophisticated ability to discriminate and respond to a wealth of socially relevant chemical cues that are highly related in structure. This inherent circuitry is likely to provide us with a rich reservoir of information regarding the evolution and caste and sex-specific modulation of chemosensory receptor space, as it applies specifically to social organization- a question that is not applicable to vector mosquitoes.

Funding Support

We are currently supported by Vanderbilt University’s IDEAs program, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID), the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and a Grand Challenge In Global Health grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for the specific purpose of using these state of the art molecular approaches to target odorant receptors in order to design a new generation of mosquito repellents and attractants to target malaria transmission.