Adverse effects of knocking down chitin synthase A on female reproduction in Culex pipiens pallens (Diptera: Culicidae)

Abstract Background Current mosquito‐borne disease vector control strategies, largely based on chemical insecticides, are seriously threatened by increasing resistance worldwide. There is also growing concerned about the adverse effects of insecticides on nontarget organisms and the environment, therefore effective and ecologically friendly alternative approaches are urgently needed. Targeting critical steps of reproduction is considered a potential way to control mosquito populations. Herein, we focused on the roles of chitin synthase A (encoded by chsa ) in the reproduction of female mosquitoes. Results The injection of small interfering RNA targeting Cpchsa in female Culex pipiens pallens (Diptera: Culicidae) had antireproductive effects, including decreased follicle numbers, egg‐laying, and hatching rate. Scanning electron microscopy observations showed that Cpchsa silencing caused a defective egg envelope, including absence of the vitelline membrane and cracked chorion layers, which resulted in abnormal permeability. Widely distributed nurse cell apoptosis and follicular epithelial cell autophagy were observed in Cpchsa ‐silenced ovaries during the vitellogenesis phase. Consistent with the detective egg envelope formation during oogenesis, the exochorionic eggshell structures were also affected in eggs deposited by Cpchsa ‐silenced mosquitoes. Conclusion This study provided fundamental evidence for the role of chitin synthase A in the female reproductive process of mosquitoes and might result in a novel alternative strategy for mosquito control. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.