The insect reservoir of biodiversity for viruses and for antiviral mechanisms

Olmo, Roenick Proveti; Martins, Nelson; Aguiar, Eric Roberto Guimarães Rocha; Marques, João Trindade; Imler, Jean‐Luc

doi:10.1590/0001-3765201920190122

Cited by 10 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 28 publications

(16 reference statements)

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“…The number of newly discovered arthropod viruses has been exponentially increasing after the development of massive parallel sequencing technologies, but in the majority of the cases, little is known about their biology and ecology as well as their impact on human health and economy [ 24 , 25 ]. It was recently shown that insects host stable populations of viruses, or core viromes, that are vertically transmitted both in laboratory colonies and in nature [ 26 , 27 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transovarial transmission of a core virome in the Chagas disease vector Rhodnius prolixus

et al. 2021

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Triatomine assassin bugs comprise hematophagous insect vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease. Although the microbiome of these species has been investigated to some extent, only one virus infecting Triatoma infestans has been identified to date. Here, we describe for the first time seven (+) single-strand RNA viruses (RpV1-7) infecting Rhodnius prolixus, a primary vector of Chagas disease in Central and South America. We show that the RpVs belong to the Iflaviridae, Permutotetraviridae and Solemoviridae and are vertically transmitted from the mothers to the progeny via transovarial transmission. Consistent with this, all the RpVs, except RpV2 that is related to the entomopathogenic Slow bee paralysis virus, established persistent infections in our R. prolixus colony. Furthermore, we show that R. prolixus ovaries express 22-nucleotide viral siRNAs (vsiRNAs), but not viral piRNAs, that originate from the processing of dsRNA intermediates during viral replication of the RpVs. Interestingly, the permutotetraviruses and sobemoviruses display shared pools of vsiRNAs that might provide the basis for a cross-immunity system. The vsiRNAs are maternally deposited in the eggs, where they likely contribute to reduce the viral load and protect the developing embryos. Our results unveil for the first time a complex core virome in R. prolixus and begin to shed light on the RNAi-based antiviral defenses in triatomines.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transovarial transmission of a core virome in the Chagas disease vector Rhodnius prolixus

et al. 2021

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“…Similarly, current research continues to elucidate interactions among mosquitoes, their endogenous microbiota, and other pathogens they transmit. In A. aegypti, the microbiota in the mosquito has been reported to influence the susceptibility to infection to arboviruses [13,15,16]. For example, DENV replication has been reported to be affected by gut bacteria [17,18] which exert antiviral activity through mechanisms not completely understood [13,[19][20][21], but that may be indirectly associated to innate antiviral responses and antimicrobial peptides by the gut microbiota [17].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

High prevalence of Phasi Charoen-like virus from wild-caught Aedes aegypti in Grenada, W.I. as revealed by metagenomic analysis

et al. 2020

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Arboviruses cause diseases of significant global health concerns. Interactions between mosquitoes and their microbiota as well as the important role of this interaction in the mosquito's capacity to harbor and transmit pathogens have emerged as important fields of research. Aedes aegypti is one of the most abundant mosquitoes in many geographic locations, a vector capable of transmitting a number of arboviruses such as dengue and Zika. Currently, there are few studies on the metavirome of this mosquito particularly in the Americas. This study analyzes the metavirome of A. aegypti from Grenada, a Caribbean nation with tropical weather, abundant A. aegypti, and both endemic and arboviral pathogens transmitted by this mosquito. Between January and December 2018, 1152 mosquitoes were collected from six semi-rural locations near houses in St. George Parish, Grenada, by weekly trapping using BG-Sentinel traps. From these, 300 A. aegypti were selected for analysis. The metavirome was analyzed using the Illumina HiSeq 1500 for deep sequencing. The generation sequencing library construction protocol used was NuGEN Universal RNA with an average read length of 125 bp. Reads were mapped to the A. aegypti assembly. Non-mosquito reads were analyzed using the tools FastViromeExplorer. The NCBI total virus, RNA virus, and eukaryotic virus databases were used as references. The metagenomic comparison analysis showed that the most abundant virus-related reads among all databases and assemblies was Phasi Charoen-like virus. The Phasi Charoen-like virus results are in agreement to other studies in America, Asia and Australia. Further studies using wild-caught mosquitoes is needed to assess the impact of this insect-specific virus on the A. aegypti lifecycle and vector capacity.

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“…The metatranscriptomic studies from different Triatomine species including field-captured bugs together with functional assays for viral pathogenicity are some of the strategies which might be used to better understand the Triatomine virome diversity. This goal is of paramount importance and might be achieved by including the analysis of viral small interfering RNAs (vsiRNAs), which not only provide valuable information on the antiviral systems acting in the insect, but can also be employed for the assembly of the genome of new viruses (16,75). If some triatomines are capable of transmitting T. cruzi to vertebrates and humans, we cannot rule out that they might also be competent vectors capable of transmitting pathogenic viruses (3).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Neglected Virome of Triatomine Insects

Cardoso

Brito²,

Brito³

et al. 2022

Front. Trop. Dis

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The Triatominae subfamily (Reduviidae) harbors some hematophagous insect species that have been firmly connected to the transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease. Triatomines not only host and transmit trypanosomatids, but also coexist with a variety of symbiotic microorganisms that generally reside in the insect’s intestinal flora. The microbiome has profound effects on the physiology, immunity, fitness and survival of animals and plants. The interaction between triatomines and bacteria has been investigated to some extent and has revealed important bacteria symbionts. In contrast, the range of viral species that can infect triatomine insects is almost completely unknown. In some cases, genomic and metatranscriptomic approaches have uncovered sequences related to possible viral genomes, but, to date, only eight positive single-strand RNA viruses, namely Triatoma virus and Rhodnius prolixus viruses 1 - 7 have been investigated in more detail. Here, we review the literature available on triatomine viruses and the viruses-insect host relationship. The lack of broader metagenomic and metatranscriptomic studies in these medically relevant insects underscores the importance of expanding our knowledge of the triatomine virome both for surveillance purposes as well as to possibly harness their potential for insect vector population control strategies.

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The insect reservoir of biodiversity for viruses and for antiviral mechanisms

Cited by 10 publications

References 28 publications

Transovarial transmission of a core virome in the Chagas disease vector Rhodnius prolixus

Transovarial transmission of a core virome in the Chagas disease vector Rhodnius prolixus

High prevalence of Phasi Charoen-like virus from wild-caught Aedes aegypti in Grenada, W.I. as revealed by metagenomic analysis

The Neglected Virome of Triatomine Insects

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