Project description:The study provides a comparative of transcript levels in uninfected and CHIKV-infected Aedes aegypti derived Aag2 cells using RNA Seq
Project description:This analysis compare gene expression between 4 day old sugar fed female and male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Keywords: Aedes aegypti sex specific expression
Project description:Loquacious-2 (Loqs2) is a recently identified paralog of Loquacious found in Aedes aegypti. Data presented here allowed the proteomic characterization of Loqs2 interactome in Aedes aegypti Aag2 cells. We carried out immunoprecipitation experiments where Loqs2 tagged protein was precipitated along with its partners. Immunoprecipitation of tagged eGFP protein was performed in the same conditions to verify the specificity of these associations. Experiments were performed in biological triplicates.
Project description:Aedes aegypti mosquitoes infect hundreds of millions of people each year with dangerous viral pathogens including dengue, yellow fever, Zika, and chikungunya. Progress in understanding the biology of this insect, and developing tools to fight it, depends on the availablity of a high-quality genome assembly. Here we use DNA proximity ligaton (Hi-C) and Pacific Biosciences long reads to create AaegL5 - a highly contiguous A. aegypti reference.
Project description:PIWI-interacting (pi) RNAs are a class of small RNAs that have diverse functions in mosquitoes. In order to uncover novel components involved in biogenesis or function of the piRNA pathway in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, we performed mass spectrometry analyses on immunoprecipitated PIWI proteins and their interactors.
Project description:MicroRNAs (miRNA) have alternative forms known as isomiRs, which differ from each other by a few nucleotides. Next generation sequencing platforms facilitate identification of these isomiRs and recent discoveries regarding their functional importance have increased our understandings of the regulatory complexities of the microRNAome. Observed changes in the miRNA profiles in mosquitoes infected with flaviviruses have implicated small RNAs in the interactions between viruses and their vectors. Here we analysed the isomiR profiles of both uninfected and infected blood fed Aedes aegypti mosquitoes with a major human pathogen, Dengue virus at two time points post-infection. We found noticeable changes to the isomiR expression profile in response to infection and aging. Data analysis revealed a distinct bias towards isomiR production in the mature miRNA as opposed to the star strand. Furthermore, we noticed that only in 40% of Ae. aegypti miRNAs, the most abundant reads for each particular miRNA match the exact sequence reported in the miRbase. The isomiR expression variations between an Ae. aegypti embryonic cell line (Aag2) and whole mosquitoes demonstrated a tissue-specific pattern of isomiR production. Our results illustrated a bias for certain types of isomiRs for each miRNA. The findings presented in this study also provide evidence that isomiR production is not a random phenomenon and may be important in DENV colonisation of its vector.
Project description:This analysis defines the adult female and developmental specific transcriptomes of Aedes aegypti. Keywords: Aedews aegypti, development, gene expression
Project description:The incomplete genome annotation of non-model organisms hampers molecular and proteomic studies. Proteomics informed by transcriptomics (PIT) is suited to non-model organisms because peptides are identified using transcriptomic, not genomic, data. Aedes aegypti is the mosquito vector for the (re-)emerging dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever and Zika viruses. An Ae. aegypti genome sequence is available, however experimental evidence for >90% of the Ae. aegypti proteome or the activity of transposable elements (TEs) that constitute 50% of the Ae. aegypti genome is lacking. We used PIT to characterise the proteome of the Aedes aegypti derived cell line Aag2. Hotspots of incomplete genome annotation were identified which are not explained by poor sequence and assembly quality. We developed criteria for the characterisation of proteomically active TEs and demonstrate that protein expression does not correlate with a TE’s genomic abundance. Finally, we identify Phasi Charoen-like virus as an unrecognised contaminant of Aag2 cells. We therefore present the first proteomic characterisation of mobile genetic elements, and provide proof-of-principle that PIT can evaluate a genome’s annotation to guide annotation efforts.
