Caution: This content contains graphic images. In a video by Perran Ross, Ph.D., it is observed that mosquitoes that have undergone a simple operation lose the ability to sense when they have had their fill of blood, leading them to continue drinking until they burst.
There is a technique to make mosquitoes feed until they explode, which requires a small incision.
More than 50 years ago, Dr. Robert Gwadz discovered that by making an incision in the ventral nerve cord of a mosquito, the signal that signals satiety is cut, causing an unquenchable thirst for blood.
Mosquitoes undergo this procedure can drink more than four times their weight and eventually explode.
The discovery led Dr. Gwadz to hypothesize that blood ingestion is regulated by abdominal stretch receptors that prevent mosquitoes from drinking to death.
Inspired by scientific curiosity, Dr. Perran Rose decided to perform the procedure on female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes (the only ones that feed on blood) that he had placed in the refrigerator for an hour to immobilize them.
Then, under a dissecting microscope, I use one pair of forceps to immobilize the mosquito on its side and a second pair to pinch the abdomen, crushing the ventral nerve cord.
The next day, he let the mosquitoes feed on his arm. And then the magic happened.
The mosquitoes drank far more than their fair share of blood and became unable to fly or even walk. Others went even further, drinking so much that they finally exploded. Often, they will continue to feed long after their abdomens have been ruptured, unaware that what was going in was coming straight out the other end.
Although the results are spectacular, performing surgery on individual mosquitoes is not a practical way to control mosquito populations or reduce the incidence of mosquito-borne diseases.
Source of information here.
Can mosquitoes drink blood until they explode?
Yes, it is true that mosquitoes can drink blood until they explode. This is because, once they have undergone a simple operation that cuts the ventral nerve cord, they lose the ability to sense when they are satiated with blood and continue to drink until their abdomen swells so much that it explodes.
However, it is important to note that this phenomenon occurs in mosquitoes that have been manipulated in the laboratory and not in nature, and that this is not a practical way to control mosquito populations or reduce the incidence of mosquito-borne diseases.
Esta entrada también está disponible en:
Español
