Experimental colonization of Culicoides arakawae in laboratory

Culicoides arakawae의 실험실내 colonization

Culicoides arakawae is a kind of the main blood sucking insects of domestic fowls and serves as a vector of Leukocytozoom caulleryi, the causative protozoon of chicken leukocytozoonosis. In this study, the complete life history of C arakawae was cycled by laboratory colonization. Adult midges were collected from various poultry farm by light trap. The laboratory colonization was performed under the conditions of constant temperature of $25{\pm}1^{\circ}C$ and relative humidity of 80% or above. The hatched larvae were cultured in larval medium consisted of rice field mud and activated charcoal powder. The surface of medium was continuously flowed with biologically conditioned water. The fine powder meal composed of pellet feed for mice and equal mount of yeast was supplied for feeding larvae at every 72 hours. The life cycle completed at $25^{\circ}C$ in 35~35 days ; the period of preoviposition, egg. larval and pupal stage was 2~3, 3~4, 28~30 and 3 days, respectively. The measurements of the eggs, the lst instar larvae, the 4th instar larvae and pupae was $36.28{\mu}m{\pm}1.95$, $13.58{\mu}m{\pm}0.72$, $4000{\mu}m{\pm}1.47$ and $219.95{\mu}m{\pm}6.25$ in $mean{\pm}S.D.$, respectively. In order to confirm experimental colonization of C arakawae in laboratory, the colonized adult midges were allowed to suck blood from chicken infected with L caulleryi. The oocysts and sporozoites could be identified in midguts and salivary grands of engorged midges at 72 hours after blood sucking.