The transcriptional response in mosquitoes distinguishes between fungi and bacteria but not Gram types
Abstract Mosquitoes are prolific vectors of human pathogens, therefore a clear and accurate understanding of the organization of their antimicrobial defenses is crucial for informing the development of transmission control strategies. The canonical infection response in insects, as described in the...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2024-04-01
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| Series: | BMC Genomics |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-024-10153-0 |
| _version_ | 1797209552609869824 |
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| author | Bretta Hixson Louise Huot Bianca Morejon Xiaowei Yang Peter Nagy Kristin Michel Nicolas Buchon |
| author_facet | Bretta Hixson Louise Huot Bianca Morejon Xiaowei Yang Peter Nagy Kristin Michel Nicolas Buchon |
| author_sort | Bretta Hixson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Mosquitoes are prolific vectors of human pathogens, therefore a clear and accurate understanding of the organization of their antimicrobial defenses is crucial for informing the development of transmission control strategies. The canonical infection response in insects, as described in the insect model Drosophila melanogaster, is pathogen type-dependent, with distinct stereotypical responses to Gram-negative bacteria and Gram-positive bacteria/fungi mediated by the activation of the Imd and Toll pathways, respectively. To determine whether this pathogen-specific discrimination is shared by mosquitoes, we used RNAseq to capture the genome-wide transcriptional response of Aedes aegypti and Anopheles gambiae (s.l.) to systemic infection with Gram-negative bacteria, Gram-positive bacteria, yeasts, and filamentous fungi, as well as challenge with heat-killed Gram-negative, Gram-positive, and fungal pathogens. From the resulting data, we found that Ae. aegypti and An. gambiae both mount a core response to all categories of infection, and this response is highly conserved between the two species with respect to both function and orthology. When we compared the transcriptomes of mosquitoes infected with different types of bacteria, we observed that the intensity of the transcriptional response was correlated with both the virulence and growth rate of the infecting pathogen. Exhaustive comparisons of the transcriptomes of Gram-negative-challenged versus Gram-positive-challenged mosquitoes yielded no difference in either species. In Ae. aegypti, however, we identified transcriptional signatures specific to bacterial infection and to fungal infection. The bacterial infection response was dominated by the expression of defensins and cecropins, while the fungal infection response included the disproportionate upregulation of an uncharacterized family of glycine-rich proteins. These signatures were also observed in Ae. aegypti challenged with heat-killed bacteria and fungi, indicating that this species can discriminate between molecular patterns that are specific to bacteria and to fungi. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T09:56:31Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-48d2f171d66845f285b169d06b3067e0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-2164 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T09:56:31Z |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Genomics |
| spelling | doaj.art-48d2f171d66845f285b169d06b3067e02024-04-14T11:08:38ZengBMCBMC Genomics1471-21642024-04-0125112610.1186/s12864-024-10153-0The transcriptional response in mosquitoes distinguishes between fungi and bacteria but not Gram typesBretta Hixson0Louise Huot1Bianca Morejon2Xiaowei Yang3Peter Nagy4Kristin Michel5Nicolas Buchon6Cornell Institute of Host-Microbe Interactions and Disease, Department of Entomology, Cornell UniversityCornell Institute of Host-Microbe Interactions and Disease, Department of Entomology, Cornell UniversityDivision of Biology, Kansas State UniversityCornell Institute of Host-Microbe Interactions and Disease, Department of Entomology, Cornell UniversityCornell Institute of Host-Microbe Interactions and Disease, Department of Entomology, Cornell UniversityDivision of Biology, Kansas State UniversityCornell Institute of Host-Microbe Interactions and Disease, Department of Entomology, Cornell UniversityAbstract Mosquitoes are prolific vectors of human pathogens, therefore a clear and accurate understanding of the organization of their antimicrobial defenses is crucial for informing the development of transmission control strategies. The canonical infection response in insects, as described in the insect model Drosophila melanogaster, is pathogen type-dependent, with distinct stereotypical responses to Gram-negative bacteria and Gram-positive bacteria/fungi mediated by the activation of the Imd and Toll pathways, respectively. To determine whether this pathogen-specific discrimination is shared by mosquitoes, we used RNAseq to capture the genome-wide transcriptional response of Aedes aegypti and Anopheles gambiae (s.l.) to systemic infection with Gram-negative bacteria, Gram-positive bacteria, yeasts, and filamentous fungi, as well as challenge with heat-killed Gram-negative, Gram-positive, and fungal pathogens. From the resulting data, we found that Ae. aegypti and An. gambiae both mount a core response to all categories of infection, and this response is highly conserved between the two species with respect to both function and orthology. When we compared the transcriptomes of mosquitoes infected with different types of bacteria, we observed that the intensity of the transcriptional response was correlated with both the virulence and growth rate of the infecting pathogen. Exhaustive comparisons of the transcriptomes of Gram-negative-challenged versus Gram-positive-challenged mosquitoes yielded no difference in either species. In Ae. aegypti, however, we identified transcriptional signatures specific to bacterial infection and to fungal infection. The bacterial infection response was dominated by the expression of defensins and cecropins, while the fungal infection response included the disproportionate upregulation of an uncharacterized family of glycine-rich proteins. These signatures were also observed in Ae. aegypti challenged with heat-killed bacteria and fungi, indicating that this species can discriminate between molecular patterns that are specific to bacteria and to fungi.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-024-10153-0AedesAnophelesMosquitoRNAseqTollImd |
| spellingShingle | Bretta Hixson Louise Huot Bianca Morejon Xiaowei Yang Peter Nagy Kristin Michel Nicolas Buchon The transcriptional response in mosquitoes distinguishes between fungi and bacteria but not Gram types BMC Genomics Aedes Anopheles Mosquito RNAseq Toll Imd |
| title | The transcriptional response in mosquitoes distinguishes between fungi and bacteria but not Gram types |
| title_full | The transcriptional response in mosquitoes distinguishes between fungi and bacteria but not Gram types |
| title_fullStr | The transcriptional response in mosquitoes distinguishes between fungi and bacteria but not Gram types |
| title_full_unstemmed | The transcriptional response in mosquitoes distinguishes between fungi and bacteria but not Gram types |
| title_short | The transcriptional response in mosquitoes distinguishes between fungi and bacteria but not Gram types |
| title_sort | transcriptional response in mosquitoes distinguishes between fungi and bacteria but not gram types |
| topic | Aedes Anopheles Mosquito RNAseq Toll Imd |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-024-10153-0 |
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