SUGARS IN THE ALIMENTARY CANAL OF LUTZOMYIA-YOUNGI (DIPTERA, PHLEBOTOMINAE)

Gas chromatography (GC) analysis of 159 specimens (144 females and 15 males) of Lutzomyia youngi collected in Shannon traps in a coffee plan tation in the Andean region of western Venezuela, where leishmaniasis is endemic, revealed the presence of fructose, sucrose, glucose and ma ltose in the gut and crop of the wild sandflies. The identification of the sugars was confirmed by comparing retention times with those obse rved for standard sugars and those obtained from sandflies experimenta lly fed on known sugar solutions. Although the sandflies in nature may ingest each of the four sugars, the results suggest that it is more p robable there is an invertase enzyme (glycosidase?) in the gut or crop of the sandfly which hydrolyses ingested disaccharides (e.g. sucrose) to the constituent monosaccharides (i.e. fructose and glucose). Ecolo gical and altitudinal distributions of sandfly species may be related to the availability of specific sugar sources, with epidemiological im plications. Identification of the preferred sugar could make breeding easier and would facilitate further research on Leishmania-vector rela tionships.