About
The Venus Kinase Receptors (VKR) is a new family of Receptor Tyrosine-kinase (RTK) that have been found only in invertebrates. In the mosquito species Anopheles gambiae, which is the main vector of the human malaria parasite in Africa, we identified the unique orthologue of VKR that we named A. gambiae VKR (AgVKR). Functional characterization of AgVKR in A. gambiae mosquitoes reveals that the receptor displayed functions in both immunity and reproduction of the mosquito. Hence AgVKR represents an attractive target candidate for a new generation of insecticides.