RNAi-based bioinsecticide for Aedes mosquito control

Sci Rep. 2019 Mar 11;9(1):4038. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-39666-5.

Abstract

Zika virus infection and dengue and chikungunya fevers are emerging viral diseases that have become public health threats. Their aetiologic agents are transmitted by the bite of genus Aedes mosquitoes. Without effective therapies or vaccines, vector control is the main strategy for preventing the spread of these diseases. Increased insecticide resistance calls for biorational actions focused on control of the target vector population. The chitin required for larval survival structures is a good target for biorational control. Chitin synthases A and B (CHS) are enzymes in the chitin synthesis pathway. Double-stranded RNA (dsRNA)-mediated gene silencing (RNAi) achieves specific knockdown of target proteins. Our goal in this work, a new proposed RNAi-based bioinsecticide, was developed as a potential strategy for mosquito population control. DsRNA molecules that target five different regions in the CHSA and B transcript sequences were produced in vitro and in vivo through expression in E. coli HT115 and tested by direct addition to larval breeding water. Mature and immature larvae treated with dsRNA targeting CHS catalytic sites showed significantly decreased viability associated with a reduction in CHS transcript levels. The few larval and adult survivors displayed an altered morphology and chitin content. In association with diflubenzuron, this bioinsecticide exhibited insecticidal adjuvant properties.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aedes / drug effects*
  • Animals
  • Chikungunya Fever / prevention & control*
  • Chikungunya Fever / transmission
  • Chitin Synthase / genetics*
  • Dengue / prevention & control*
  • Dengue / transmission
  • Diflubenzuron / pharmacology
  • Escherichia coli / genetics
  • Gene Silencing
  • Insecticides / pharmacology*
  • Larva / drug effects*
  • Mosquito Vectors / drug effects*
  • Zika Virus Infection / prevention & control*
  • Zika Virus Infection / transmission

Substances

  • Insecticides
  • Chitin Synthase
  • Diflubenzuron