Expression of three serine protease genes from the South East Asian malaria vector, Anopheles dirus, in relation to blood feeding and parasite infection

Three serine protease cDNA clones were isolated from Anopheles dirus, a major vector of malaria in Southeast Asia. Transcript abundance was examined following infection by Plasmodium falciparum by RT-PCR analysis. SerF3 exhibited increased transcript abundance in the whole body at 10 days post-infection with P. falciparum. All three genes are candidates for further investigation to determine their roles in mosquito immune responses.