Expelling of P. falciparum sporozoites by Anopheles stephensi mosquitoes during repeated feeding

It is currently unclear whether repeated mosquito feeding attempts achieve pathogen transmission. We measured Plasmodium falciparum sporozoite expelling in Anopheles stephensi mosquitoes during two interrupted feeding attempts. The number of expelled sporozoites was positively correlated with salivary gland sporozoite load during the first feeding effort (ρ= 0.36, p= 0.0181) but less so during subsequent feeding (ρ= 0.06, p= 0.6811). The median number of expelled sporozoites was of similar magnitude during the first and second feeding event, with a strong correlation between them (ρ= 0.56, p= 0.0002). We conclude that repeated feeding results in repeated sporozoite inoculation at similar intensity.