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Can Mosquitoes Transmit HIV or AIDS?

On a global scale, mosquitoes are infamous for their ability to transmit dangerous diseases. Mosquitoes are vectors for diseases, which they get from biting infected humans or, more commonly, animals. But what happens when mosquitoes bite an individual that is HIV-positive?

Due to the nature of HIV and the anatomy of the mosquito, mosquitoes are unable to transmit HIV or AIDs. Here’s why: 

  • Even if they bite someone who is HIV-positive, mosquitoes will not become infected with it and thus cannot transmit it. 
  • A mosquito’s proboscis has two tubes: one to suck blood from its host and the other to inject saliva into the bite. Because only saliva is injected into the host, HIV cannot be transmitted through the bite.
  • In the rare case a mosquito has HIV in its body when it bites a host, there would not be enough to infect. The virus disappears in the mosquito after just one or two days.
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Can Mosquitoes transmit HIV or AIDS in Middletown Springs, VT - Vermont Pest Control

Do Mosquitoes Transfer Blood When They Feed?

When they bite their victim, mosquitoes do not inject or circulate any blood back into you while feeding. Their unique, needle-like proboscis is to thank for this. Made up of two tubes, one tube sends saliva into the host while the other sucks up blood. This two-tube system is why mosquitoes cannot transmit HIV, which is transmitted through infected blood. Any HIV-positive blood ingested by a mosquito will dissipate in their system in just a few days, and will not be transmitted.

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Do Mosquitoes Carry HIV?

When a mosquito bites an HIV-positive individual, the virus will disappear in just 1-2 days, which is the time required for a mosquito to digest the blood. This is because HIV is unable to replicate within the mosquito’s gut, unlike humans in which HIV binds to T cells. It is during the mosquito’s digestion process that any HIV ingested is completely destroyed.

Mosquitoes & HIV

The good news is that you do not need to worry about mosquitoes transmitting HIV or AIDs. Scientists have proven that an individual would have to be bitten by 10 million mosquitoes that all had been feeding on an HIV carrier for even a single unit of HIV to be transmitted. When it comes to mosquitoes and diseases, it’s important to focus on the vector-borne diseases they do carry and spread.

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Can Mosquitoes Transmit HIV or AIDS? in Vermont

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