{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"institution":[{"name":"medRxiv"}],"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,16]],"date-time":"2026-01-16T14:02:03Z","timestamp":1768572123543,"version":"3.49.0"},"posted":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,17]]},"group-title":"Epidemiology","reference-count":28,"publisher":"openRxiv","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,17]],"date-time":"2025-11-17T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1763337600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"accepted":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,17]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                <jats:p>\n                  Children with sickle cell trait (HbAS) are protected against severe and symptomatic\n                  <jats:italic>Plasmodium falciparum<\/jats:italic>\n                  malaria. While several within-host resistance mechanisms have been investigated, it is unknown whether this protection may be attributable in part to reductions in exposure to\n                  <jats:italic>P. falciparum<\/jats:italic>\n                  parasites via mosquito bites. In a 15-month cohort in Western Kenya, we matched mosquito bloodmeals to human hosts based on short tandem repeat (STR) genotypes to determine individual mosquito biting rates. Using a multilevel multivariable model, we assessed mosquito biting behavior with respect to human \u03b2-globin genotypes and found no significant difference in the biting rates between individuals with HbAA and HbAS genotypes (biting rate ratio (BRR): 1.23, 95% CI: 0.86 - 1.77). These findings suggest that protection from malaria conferred by sickle trait is likely not attributable to reduced exposure to infectious mosquito bites.\n                <\/jats:p>\n                <jats:sec>\n                  <jats:title>Author Summary<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>Sickle cell trait (HbAS) is protective against severe and symptomatic malaria. Here, we investigate whether \u03b2-globin genotype (HbAS vs HbAA) is associated with differential mosquito biting rates. In a 15-month longitudinal cohort study in Western Kenya, we matched blood meals to community members based on short tandem repeat genotyping. We found no difference in biting rates across human \u03b2-globin types, suggesting that protection from severe and symptomatic malaria conferred by sickle trait is not attributable to reduced exposure to infectious bites.<\/jats:p>\n                <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1101\/2025.11.15.25340300","type":"posted-content","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,18]],"date-time":"2025-11-18T08:00:22Z","timestamp":1763452822000},"source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Sickle-trait hemoglobin does not influence\n                  <i>Anopheles<\/i>\n                  biting rates"],"prefix":"10.64898","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5742-8847","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Christine F","family":"Markwalter","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Emmah","family":"Kimachas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Erastus","family":"Kirwa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Joseph","family":"Kipkoech","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Samuel","family":"Kahindi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Lucy","family":"Abel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Zay Yar","family":"Han","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Judith N","family":"Mangeni","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Andrew A","family":"Obala","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Wendy Prudhomme","family":"O\u2019Meara","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Steve M","family":"Taylor","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"54368","reference":[{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S1473-3099(12)70055-5"},{"issue":"5","key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e128","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pmed.0020128","article-title":"An Immune Basis for Malaria Protection by the Sickle Cell Trait","volume":"2","year":"2005","journal-title":"PLOS Medicine"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1182\/blood-2011-08-371062"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1182\/blood-2003-11-3820"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.0711401105"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.ppat.1009659"},{"issue":"7","key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"591","DOI":"10.1016\/j.pt.2024.05.007","article-title":"\u00c0 la carte: how mosquitoes choose their blood meals","volume":"40","year":"2024","journal-title":"Trends in Parasitology"},{"issue":"5368","key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"165","DOI":"10.1038\/239165a0","article-title":"Selective Feeding of Anopheles gambiae according to ABO Blood Group Status","volume":"239","year":"1972","journal-title":"Nature"},{"issue":"3","key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.9","first-page":"385","article-title":"Preferential Feeding of Anopheles gambiae Mosquitoes on Human Subjects of Blood Group O: A Relationship Between the ABO Polymorphism and Malaria Vectors","volume":"46","year":"1974","journal-title":"Human Biology"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"118","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actatropica.2014.08.012","article-title":"Preferential feeding success of laboratory reared Anopheles stephensi mosquitoes according to ABO blood group status","volume":"140","year":"2014","journal-title":"Acta Tropica"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/ng.554"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/S0007485300010713"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1152\/physrev.00037.2020"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.14","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-023-33657-3"},{"key":"2025111915500684000_2025.11.15.25340300v1.15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Robert V , Tchuinkam T , Mulder B , Bodo JM , Verhave JP , Carnevale P , et al. 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