It is important to recognize that pathogens as microbes may be neutral in the vector. Thus, selective advantages that favor refractory vectors over parasitized vectors may not offer viable strategies for control. However, in general, there are far fewer parasites in the vector hosts than in vertebrate hosts. This suggests that there may be a greater vulnerability in the insect than in the vertebrate host. In addition the intracellular life of parasite in vertebrates often is in contrast with the extracellular life in the insect.
Exciting data are available for virus-vector interactions.
This represents the first successful examples of the development and testing of a gene that confers refractoriness to a pathogen in a mosquito. Furthermore, evidence suggests that the infection of virus in vertebrate host is enhanced significally by mosquito saliva. This has broad reaching implication for the type of immune responses mounted by vertebrates when exposed to pathogenic viruses. The meeting concluded with much optimism, a sense of a tremendous amount of work to be done, but a feeling that much progress has been made.