Fig. 1.

Serratia marcescens acquired through the oral route crosses the midgut epithelium into the hemolymph. a Hemolymph was collected by perfusion from batches of 5 mosquitoes each, at the indicated time points after feeding on Sm, and plated on LB agar containing the appropriate antibiotic. Each point on the scatter plot represents the mean CFU per batch per mosquito. Data were pooled from 5 independent biological experiments. b Guts of individual mosquitoes were dissected at the indicated time points after feeding on Sm, homogenized, and plated on LB agar containing the appropriate antibiotic. Data were pooled from 3 independent biological experiments. Each point on the scatter plot represents 1 midgut. c Bacterial counts were monitored in sugar pads harboring Sm (OD₆₀₀ = 1) over a period of 3 days. Data shown are from 7 independent biological experiments. Each point on the scatter plot corresponds to CFU/μL of sugar solution in the pad per experiment. Medians are represented by red lines. Statistical analysis was performed using the Mann-Whitney test, and medians were considered significantly different if p < 0.05. Sm, Serratia marcescens; CFU, colony-forming unit.