No accounting for taste: host preference in malaria vectors

The ability of a few Afro-tropical Anopheles species to target humans as a source of blood and shelter, a feature generally defined as anthropophily, represents a key factor in the recent evolutionary success of these species and in their capacity to transmit malaria. Anthropophily presumably results from specific and coordinated behavioural repertoires, but these have been only superficially described and their genetic basis is unknown. A comparative approach exploiting recent molecular and ethological advances promises to shed light on the genetics of anthropophily, thereby presenting novel targets for vector control.