The orthologue of D. melanogaster fruitless gene in the mosquito Aedes aegypti

Aedes aegypti is the primary vector for yellow fever and dengue fever, with an estimated 50–100 million new infections each year. To date very little is known about the genetic control of some significant aspects of its biology, as sex determination and sexual differentiation, which is restricted to a masculinizing factor, known as the M factor, on one of the homomorphic sex chromosomes, not yet molecularly identified, and to the evolutionary conserved double switch gene doublesex (Aeadsx). Here, we present the isolation and molecular characterization of the Ae. aegypti fruitless gene (Aeafru). Aeafru produces sex-specifically spliced transcripts, which are detected during development starting from late larval stages. Knowledge of sex-specifically regulated genes involved in sex determination of Ae. aegypti could contribute to development of novel additional transgenic sexing strains and to the improvement of the existing ones, useful for the male sterile insect technique.