RNA-based immunity terminates viral infection in adult Drosophila in the absence of viral suppression of RNA interference: characterization of viral small interfering RNA populations in wild-type and mutant flies.

ABSTRACT: Replication of viral RNA genomes in fruit flies and mosquitoes induces the production of virus-derived small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) to specifically reduce virus accumulation by RNA interference (RNAi). However, it is unknown whether the RNA-based antiviral immunity (RVI) is sufficiently potent to terminate infection in adult insects as occurs in cell culture. We show here that, in contrast to robust infection by Flock house virus (FHV), infection with an FHV mutant (FHVΔB2) unable to express its RNAi suppressor protein B2 was rapidly terminated in adult flies. FHVΔB2 replicated to high levels and induced high mortality rates in dicer-2 and argonaute-2 mutant flies that are RNAi defective, demonstrating that successful infection of adult Drosophila requires a virus-encoded activity to su

SUBMITTER: Han YH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3233157 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature