Aal-circRNA-407 regulates ovarian development of Aedes albopictus, a major arbovirus vector, via the miR-9a-5p/Foxl axis.
Aedes albopictus shows a rapid global expansion and dramatic vectorial capacity for various arboviruses, thus posing a severe threat to global health. Although many noncoding RNAs have been confirmed to play functional roles in various biological processes in Ae. albopictus, the roles of circRNA rem...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2023-05-01
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| Series: | PLoS Pathogens |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1011374 |
| Summary: | Aedes albopictus shows a rapid global expansion and dramatic vectorial capacity for various arboviruses, thus posing a severe threat to global health. Although many noncoding RNAs have been confirmed to play functional roles in various biological processes in Ae. albopictus, the roles of circRNA remain a mystery. In the present study, we first performed high-throughput circRNA sequencing in Ae. albopictus. Then, we identified a cysteine desulfurase (CsdA) superfamily gene-originated circRNA, named aal-circRNA-407, which was the third most abundant circRNA in adult females and displayed a fat body highly expressed manifestation and blood feeding-dependent onset. SiRNA-mediated knockdown of circRNA-407 resulted in a decrease in the number of developing follicles and a reduction in follicle size post blood meal. Furthermore, we demonstrated that circRNA-407 can act as a sponge of aal-miR-9a-5p to promote the expression of its target gene Foxl and eventually regulate ovarian development. Our study is the first to report a functional circRNA in mosquitoes, expanding our current understanding of important biological roles in mosquitoes and providing an alternative genetic strategy for mosquito control. |
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| ISSN: | 1553-7366 1553-7374 |