Impact of the immune genes expression and the regulation mechanisms modulated by small-interfering RNAs in the antiviral response of Aedes mosquitoes.

Abstract

The control of viral dissemination in vectors is regulated by mechanisms of innate immunity, which are responsible for the tolerance of viral infection in these mosquitoes and, at the same time, the maintenance of homeostasis and vector fitness. Although several molecular mechanisms are involved in this phenomenon, many remain unknown, making it essential to study the processes that potentially have the ability to prevent arbovirus replication and dissemination, since understanding what makes a given species a good vector may be the key to reducing its vectorial capacity. Considering this aspect, this project aims to investigate the influence of the expression of innate immunity genes and the regulation of ZIKV dissemination in descendants of female mosquitoes infected with different strains of dengue. Therefore, we are going to perform collections of natural populations of Aedes sp., both in their immature and adult forms, screening for arbovirus infection, establishment and amplification of colonies through intraspecific crossings, sequencing of genomes, transcriptomes, microRNAs and bioinformatics analyses.