Insights Into an Unexplored Component of the Mosquito Repeatome: Distribution and Variability of Viral Sequences Integrated Into the Genome of the Arboviral Vector Aedes albopictus.

ABSTRACT: The Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus is an invasive mosquito and a competent vector for public-health relevant arboviruses such as Chikungunya (Alphavirus), Dengue and Zika (Flavivirus) viruses. Unexpectedly, the sequencing of the genome of this mosquito revealed an unusually high number of integrated sequences with similarities to non-retroviral RNA viruses of the Flavivirus and Rhabdovirus genera. These Non-retroviral Integrated RNA Virus Sequences (NIRVS) are enriched in piRNA clusters and coding sequences and have been proposed to constitute novel mosquito immune factors. However, given the abundance of NIRVS and their variable viral origin, their relative biological roles remain unexplored. Here we used an analytical approach that intersects com

SUBMITTER: Pischedda E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6379468 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature