The Wolbachia strain wAu provides highly efficient virus transmission blocking in Aedes aegypti

Ant, T. H., Herd, C. S., Geoghegan, V., Hoffmann, A. A. and Sinkins, S. P. (2018) The Wolbachia strain wAu provides highly efficient virus transmission blocking in Aedes aegypti. PLoS Pathogens, 14(1), e1006815. (doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006815) (PMID:29370307) (PMCID:PMC5784998)

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Abstract

Introduced transinfections of the inherited bacteria Wolbachia can inhibit transmission of viruses by Aedes mosquitoes, and in Ae. aegypti are now being deployed for dengue control in a number of countries. Only three Wolbachia strains from the large number that exist in nature have to date been introduced and characterized in this species. Here novel Ae. aegypti transinfections were generated using the wAlbA and wAu strains. In its native Ae. albopictus, wAlbA is maintained at lower density than the co-infecting wAlbB, but following transfer to Ae. aegypti the relative strain density was reversed, illustrating the strain-specific nature of Wolbachia-host co-adaptation in determining density. The wAu strain also reached high densities in Ae. aegypti, and provided highly efficient transmission blocking of dengue and Zika viruses. Both wAu and wAlbA were less susceptible than wMel to density reduction/incomplete maternal transmission resulting from elevated larval rearing temperatures. Although wAu does not induce cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI), it was stably combined with a CI-inducing strain as a superinfection, and this would facilitate its spread into wild populations. Wolbachia wAu provides a very promising new option for arbovirus control, particularly for deployment in hot tropical climates.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Geoghegan, Vincent and Sinkins, Professor Steven and Ant, Dr Thomas and Herd, Dr Christie
Creator Roles:
Ant, T. H.Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing
Herd, C. S.Investigation
Geoghegan, V.Investigation
Sinkins, S.Conceptualization, Supervision, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing
Authors: Ant, T. H., Herd, C. S., Geoghegan, V., Hoffmann, A. A., and Sinkins, S. P.
College/School:College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity
College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity > Centre for Virus Research
Journal Name:PLoS Pathogens
Publisher:Public Library of Science
ISSN:1553-7366
ISSN (Online):1553-7374
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2018 Ant et al.
First Published:First published in PLoS Pathogens 14(1): e1006815
Publisher Policy:Reproduced under a Creative Commons License

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Project CodeAward NoProject NamePrincipal InvestigatorFunder's NameFunder RefLead Dept
732881Wolbachia-mediated arbovirus inhibition in mosquitoesSteven SinkinsWellcome Trust (WELLCOTR)202888/Z/16/ZMVLS III - CENTRE FOR VIRUS RESEARCH
772321Wolbachia-based control of virus transmission by the mosquito Aedes albopictusSteven SinkinsWellcome Trust (WELLCOTR)108508/Z/15/ZMVLS III - CENTRE FOR VIRUS RESEARCH