Carbon dioxide sensitivity of mosquitoes infected with California encephalitis virus.

Four species of mosquitoes became sensitive to carbon dioxide approximately 3 to 4 days after they received intrathoracic injectins of California encephalitis virus. Aedes melanimon and Aedes dorsalis infected orally with California encephalitis virus also became carbon dioxide-sensitive, but mosquitoes infected transovarially did not. Sensitivity to carbon dioxide was inhibited by antiserum to California encephalitis virus. To our knowledge this is the first report of carbon dioxide sensitivity induced in arthropods by a bunyavirus and the first demonstration of this phenomenon by an arbovirus in its proven vector.