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Study offers clues into when and why mosquitoes bite

Yale researchers have uncovered how taste guides mosquitoes’ biting behavior, which may inform efforts to deter biting and halt disease spread.

But while scientists have uncovered the ways that odor and heat help mosquitoes find humans, little is known about the role of taste once they’ve landed. “This mosquito is capable of spreading many diseases, including dengue and chikungunya,” said senior author John Carlson, the Eugene Higgins Professor of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology in Yale’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences. “And that nuance makes sense to us,” said lead author Lisa Baik, a postdoctoral associate in Carlson’s lab who led the work.

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