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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Invasive Insect Biocontrol & Behavior Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #293668

Title: Midgut transcriptomic response of the gypsy moth, lymantria dispar, to infection with l. dispar and Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedroviruses

Author
item Harrison, Robert - Bob
item Gundersen-Rindal, Dawn
item Sparks, Michael

Submitted to: Society for Invertebrate Pathology Annual Meeting
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/30/2013
Publication Date: 8/11/2013
Citation: Harrison, R.L., Gundersen, D.E., Sparks, M. 2013. Midgut transcriptomic response of the gypsy moth, lymantria dispar, to infection with l. dispar and Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedroviruses. Society for Invertebrate Pathology Annual Meeting. p.72.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Developmental resistance of gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar) larvae to baculovirus infection consists of both midgut-based and systemic components. To characterize the midgut response of larvae to baculovirus infection and identify larval host genes putatively involved in the midgut component of developmental resistance, we carried out a transcriptomic analysis of gene expression early after infection with L. dispar multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (LdMNPV) or with a heterologous virus, Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV). Gypsy moth larvae at 48 h after the 3rd instar molt were allowed to feed on diet contaminated with a 10X LC99 quantity of LdMNPV-Ab-a624 OBs or an equivalent quantity of AcMNPV-C6 OBs, or with an equivalent volume of water, for 6 h. Larvae were then transferred to non-contaminated diet, and midguts were dissected 9 h after virus acquisition. Large-scale Illumina sequencing of cDNA prepared from midgut RNA was carried out. Assembly and analysis of the sequencing reads revealed that while many early LdMNPV genes were expressed in the midguts of infected larvae, virtually no AcMNPV gene expression was detected. Several host transcripts were elevated in LdMNPV-infected larvae relative to control (uninfected) larvae, including many transcripts with BLAST matches to putative 40S and 60S ribosomal protein genes. The impact of AcMNPV infection on host gene expression was much less pronounced. This study contributes to our understanding of host responses to baculovirus infection.