Abstract:
In Australia, Soldier flies (Inopus spp.) are economically significant pests of sugarcane that currently lack a viable management strategy. Despite various research efforts, the mechanisms underlying the damage caused by soldier fly larvae remain poorly understood. Our study aims to explore whether this damage is associated with the transmission of plant viruses during larval feeding. We also explore the larval transcriptome to identify any entomopathogenic viruses with the potential to be used as biocontrol agents in future pest management programs. Seven novel virus sequences are identified and characterised using de novo assembly of RNA-Seq data obtained from salivary glands of larvae. The novel virus sequences belong to different virus families and are tentatively named SF-associated anphevirus (SFaAV), SF-associated orthomyxo-like virus (SFaOV), SF-associated narna-like virus (SFaNV), SF-associated partiti-like virus (SFaPV), SF-associated toti-like virus (SFaTV-1 and SFaTV-2) and SF-associated densovirus (SFaDV). These newly identified viruses are more likely insect-associated viruses, as phylogenetic analyses show that they cluster with other insect-specific viruses. Small RNA analysis indicates prominent peaks at both 21 nt and 26-29 nt, suggesting the activation of host siRNA and piwiRNA pathways. Our study helps to improve understanding of the virome of soldier flies and could identify insect viruses for deployment in novel pest management strategies.
摘要:
在澳大利亚,士兵飞(Inopusspp。)是甘蔗的经济上重要的害虫,目前缺乏可行的管理策略。尽管进行了各种研究,士兵苍蝇幼虫造成伤害的潜在机制仍然知之甚少。我们的研究旨在探讨这种损害是否与幼虫摄食过程中植物病毒的传播有关。我们还探索了幼虫转录组,以鉴定任何有可能在未来的害虫管理计划中用作生物防治剂的昆虫病原病毒。使用从幼虫唾液腺获得的RNA-Seq数据的从头组装鉴定并表征了七个新的病毒序列。新病毒序列属于不同的病毒家族,暂定名为SF相关病毒(SFaAV),SF相关的正粘病毒(SFaOV),SF相关narna样病毒(SFaNV),SF相关粒子样病毒(SFaPV),SF相关的Toti样病毒(SFaTV-1和SFaTV-2)和SF相关的densovirus(SFaDV)。这些新发现的病毒更可能是昆虫相关病毒,正如系统发育分析表明它们与其他昆虫特异性病毒聚集在一起。小RNA分析显示在21nt和26-29nt处都有突出的峰,提示宿主siRNA和piwiRNA途径的激活。我们的研究有助于提高对士兵苍蝇病毒的了解,并可以识别昆虫病毒以用于新型害虫管理策略中。