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Wolbachia RNase HI contributes to virus blocking in the mosquito Aedes aegypti

Mazhar Hussain1, Guangmei Zhang1, Michael Leitner1

  • 1Australian Infectious Disease Research Centre, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia.

Iscience
|January 13, 2023
PubMed

Insights

Wolbachia pipientis bacteria block arbovirus replication in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. A Wolbachia RNase HI gene degrades viral RNA, explaining this virus blocking mechanism.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Virology
  • Entomology

Background:

  • Wolbachia pipientis is an endosymbiotic bacterium that confers protection against arboviruses in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes.
  • The precise mechanism by which Wolbachia blocks arbovirus replication is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of a Wolbachia RNase HI gene in blocking arbovirus replication.
  • To elucidate the mechanism of Wolbachia-mediated virus blocking.

Main Methods:

  • Characterization of the Wolbachia RNase HI gene (wRNase HI).
  • Knockdown of wRNase HI using antisense RNA in mosquito cell lines and Aedes aegypti.
  • Overexpression of wRNase HI in the absence of Wolbachia.

Main Results:

  • wRNase HI expression is rapidly induced upon dengue virus infection.
  • Knockdown of wRNase HI led to increased dengue virus replication.
  • Overexpression of wRNase HI reduced positive-sense RNA virus replication but not negative-sense RNA virus replication.

Conclusions:

  • Wolbachia RNase HI is a key factor in degrading viral RNA, contributing to arbovirus blocking.
  • Antisense RNA technology can be used to manipulate Wolbachia genes in mosquitoes.
  • This study provides a mechanistic link between Wolbachia and virus resistance in Aedes aegypti.
Keywords:
Molecular geneticsMolecular microbiologyVirology

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