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Transinfection: a method to investigate W olbachia –host interactions and control arthropod‐borne disease
Author(s) -
Hughes G. L.,
Rasgon J. L.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
insect molecular biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.955
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-2583
pISSN - 0962-1075
DOI - 10.1111/imb.12066
Subject(s) - wolbachia , biology , cytoplasmic incompatibility , host (biology) , arthropod , insect , phenotype , identification (biology) , evolutionary biology , genetics , ecology , gene
The bacterial endosymbiont W olbachia manipulates arthropod host biology in numerous ways, including sex ratio distortion and differential offspring survival. These bacteria infect a vast array of arthropods, some of which pose serious agricultural and human health threats. W olbachia‐ mediated phenotypes such as cytoplasmic incompatibility and/or pathogen interference can be used for vector and disease control; however, many medically important vectors and important agricultural species are uninfected or are infected with strains of W olbachia that do not elicit phenotypes desirable for disease or pest control. The ability to transfer strains of W olbachia into new hosts (transinfection) can create novel W olbachia –host associations. Transinfection has two primary benefits. First, W olbachia– host interactions can be examined to tease apart the influence of the host and bacteria on phenotypes. Second, desirable phenotypes induced by W olbachia in a particular insect can be transferred to another recipient host. This can allow the manipulation of insect populations that transmit pathogens or detrimentally affect agriculture. As such, transinfection is a valuable tool to explore W olbachia biology and control arthropod‐borne disease. The present review summarizes what is currently known about W olbachia transinfection methods and applications. We also provide a comprehensive list of published successful and unsuccessful W olbachia transinfection attempts.