100 - Human blood feeding prevalence in mosquito vectors in Lubbock, Texas, 2024

Wednesday, March 25, 2026

9:30 AM - 9:40 AM PDT

Location: B116

Presenter(s)

Melissa M. Clawson, BS, MS (she/her/hers)

Graduate Student
Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Texas, United States

Co-Author(s)

HC

Hunter O. Covey, B.S., M.S. Microbiology

Entry Level Scientist
NaMi Diagnostics, Texas, United States
Joseph McMillan, B.S. Ecology, Ph.D. Population Biology, Ecology and Evolution

Assistant Professor
Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Texas, United States
Mark J. Lavin, III, B.S. Cell and Molecular Biology

Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Texas, United States
Corey L. Brelsfoard, B.S., M.S., Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Texas, United States

Abstract: 625 blood fed mosquitoes across 15 species from the 2024 field trapping season in Lubbock, Texas were screened for human blood presence using a gel-based assay. 49.44% of successfully amplified products were human positive. Humans made up significantly greater than 50% of the tested meals in Aedes aegypti (62.5%, n=152) and Culex tarsalis (70.1%, n=101). This is the first estimate of human-vector contacts in an important urban center in the Texas Panhandle.