Martinez, J. , Ant, T. H., Murdochy, S. M., Tong, L., da Silva Filipe, A. and Sinkins, S. P. (2022) Genome sequencing and comparative analysis of Wolbachia strain wAlbA reveals Wolbachia-associated plasmids are common. PLoS Genetics, 18(9), e1010406. (doi: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1010406) (PMID:36121852) (PMCID:PMC9560607)
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Abstract
Wolbachia are widespread maternally-transmitted bacteria of arthropods that often spread by manipulating their host’s reproduction through cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI). Their invasive potential is currently being harnessed in field trials aiming to control mosquito-borne diseases. Wolbachia genomes commonly harbour prophage regions encoding the cif genes which confer their ability to induce CI. Recently, a plasmid-like element was discovered in wPip, a Wolbachia strain infecting Culex mosquitoes; however, it is unclear how common such extra-chromosomal elements are in Wolbachia. Here we sequenced the complete genome of wAlbA, a strain of the symbiont found in Aedes albopictus, after eliminating the co-infecting and higher density wAlbB strain that previously made sequencing of wAlbA challenging. We show that wAlbA is associated with two new plasmids and identified additional Wolbachia plasmids and related chromosomal islands in over 20% of publicly available Wolbachia genome datasets. These plasmids encode a variety of accessory genes, including several phage-like DNA packaging genes as well as genes potentially contributing to host-symbiont interactions. In particular, we recovered divergent homologues of the cif genes in both Wolbachia- and Rickettsia-associated plasmids. Our results indicate that plasmids are common in Wolbachia and raise fundamental questions around their role in symbiosis. In addition, our comparative analysis provides useful information for the future development of genetic tools to manipulate and study Wolbachia symbionts.
| Item Type: | Articles |
|---|---|
| Status: | Published |
| Refereed: | Yes |
| Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: | Murdochy, Mr Shivan and Martinez, Dr Julien and Sinkins, Professor Steven and Tong, Dr Lily and Ant, Dr Thomas and Da Silva Filipe, Dr Ana |
| Creator Roles: | Martinez, J.Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing Ant, T. H.Investigation, Methodology, Writing – review and editing Murdochy, S. M.Investigation Tong, L.Investigation da Silva Filipe, A.Investigation Sinkins, S. P.Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Project administration, Writing – original draft |
| Authors: | Martinez, J., Ant, T. H., Murdochy, S. M., Tong, L., da Silva Filipe, A., and Sinkins, S. P. |
| College/School: | College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity > Centre for Virus Research |
| Journal Name: | PLoS Genetics |
| Publisher: | Public Library of Science |
| ISSN: | 1553-7390 |
| ISSN (Online): | 1553-7404 |
| Published Online: | 19 September 2022 |
| Copyright Holders: | Copyright © 2022 Martinez et al. |
| First Published: | First published in PLoS Genetics 18(9): e1010406 |
| Publisher Policy: | Reproduced under a Creative Commons License |
| Data DOI: | 10.5525/gla.researchdata.1342 |
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