Project description:We performed a whole-genome transcriptomic analysis of pleometrotic queens infected by SINV-1, SINV-2 or co-infected with both viruses, to characterize patterns of gene expression associated with viral infection and identify genes responding differentially to the two viruses. We sampled fire ant queens in Gainesville, Florida, immediately after a mating flight. We arranged them in pairs based on having similar weights (range ±0.2 mg) to allow pleometrotic colony founding. We housed paired queens in nesting tubes in claustral conditions (no food or water) for one month. Thereafter, we collected queens in dry ice, we isolated total RNA from whole bodies and used it to quantify SINV-1 and SINV-2 viruses with real-time PCR. We selected 2 queens that were virus-free as controls, 3 SINV-1-infected, 4 SINV-2-infected and 11 co-infected by both viruses. These samples were processed for microarrays analysis.
