Researchers at the University of Bath in the United Kingdom and the University of Chicago have achieved a major breakthrough in insect parasite genetics research. These findings will provide a promising new target for the prevention of the spread of malaria. The results of this study were published in the most recent issue of Genetics.
Wolbachia is a very special bacterium due to its unique biological characteristics
It has been extensively studied. It forms a genetically inherited symbiotic intracellular infection in many insects and other invertebrates. This bacterium can infect 80% of the world's insects and multiply within their host to promote their own spread.
Researchers from all over the world have attempted to develop malaria control strategies that use genetically modified Wolbachia to infect mosquitoes and carry mosquitoes whose host does not transmit Plasmodium. Plasmodium is the culprit responsible for malaria.
In this new study, researchers at the University of Bath and the University of Chicago in the United Kingdom identified for the first time two genes that Wolbachia manipulated to infect Drosophila. This achievement is an important breakthrough in understanding the genetic basis of Wolbachia infection.
In recent years, many researchers have had a keen interest in using genetically modified Wolbachia to modify the natural insect population. However, it is difficult to achieve this goal if it is not fully understood how Wolbachia reacts with its host insects.
The discovery of these two Drosophila genes that can be manipulated by Wolbachia makes this process clear to the public, and researchers are now able to understand more clearly Wolbachia's manipulation of amplification processes in different hosts.
In this study, the researchers compared expressed genes in infected and uninfected male fruit flies. One of the genes they identified was called a zipper. Although the gene was already familiar to researchers, it had never been associated with Wolbachia's infection.