N-ACETYLTRANSFERASE ACTIVITY DURING OVARIAN DEVELOPMENT IN THE MOSQUITO AEDES-AEGYPTI FOLLOWING BLOOD FEEDING

N-acetyltransferase (NAT) activity was demonstrated by high pressure liquid chromatograph with electrochemical detection in the developing ovary A. aegypti. Enzyme activity was induced by blood feeding, and was highest just prior to oviposition. N-acetyldopamine (NADA), a principle sclerotizing agent in insects and a derivative of dopamine, was synthesized by N-acetyltransferase in the presence of the cofactor acetyl CoA. The results of this investigation suggest that the metabolism of dopamine in the mosquito ovary is not different from the metabolic pathway involved in cuticular sclerotization, and that NAT may be involved in tanning of the egg chorion.