Acta Scientifica Malaysia (ASM)

Vector competence is the inherent capacity of an insect to transmit diseases to plants and other organisms. It’s a complex feature influenced by several factors such as their physiology, microbiology, environment and some genetic factors. The main molecular features that separate vector insects apart from their non-vector counterparts are depicted in this review by synthesizing current developments in comparative genomics. The modulation of pathogen susceptibility, their transmission is largely dependent on various immunological Pathways-Toll, IMD and JAK-STAT. Here insects’ gene family expansions and their regulatory mechanisms related to immunity, olfaction, digestion, detoxification and salivary secretion by combining information from annotated genomes, transcriptome profile experiments have been studied. Beyond genome discovery, the review examines how domestication, natural selection, urban adaptations have contributed to shape vectorial traits across the insect populations. This review also investigates the genetic bases of the main barriers to transmission-salivary gland tropism, midgut infection and hemocoel dispersion. Vector control mechanisms are conceivable by developments in high-through- microbiome engineering, input sequencing, CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing and RNA interference. Moreover, this review studies the potential of integrative multiomics and predictive genomes addressing ethical and ecological issues crucial for field applications.