Journal of Insect Science (2017) 17 (16), 1-8

Wen-Juan Jiao, Fei-Qiang Li, Yue-Liang Bai, Xiao-Xiao Shi, Mu-Fei Zhu, Min-Jing Zhang, Cun-Gui Mao and Zeng-Rong Zhu (2017)
Rice stripe virus infection alters mRNA levels of sphingolipid-metabolizing enzymes and sphingolipids content in Laodelphax striatellus
Journal of Insect Science 17 (16), 1-8
Abstract: Sphingolipids and their metabolites have been implicated in viral infection and replication in mammal cells but how their metabolizing enzymes in the host are regulated by viruses remains largely unknown. Here we report the identification of 12 sphingolipid genes and their regulation by Rice stripe virus in the small brown planthopper (Laodelphax striatellus Fallén), a serious pest of rice throughout eastern Asia. According to protein sequence similarity, we identified 12 sphingolipid enzyme genes in L. striatellus. By comparing their mRNA levels in viruliferous versus nonviruliferous L. striatellus at different life stages by qPCR, we found that RSV infection upregulated six genes (LsCGT1, LsNAGA1, LsSGPP, LsSMPD4, LsSMS, and LsSPT) in most stages of L. striatellus. Especially, four genes (LsCGT1, LsSMPD2, LsNAGA1, and LsSMS) and another three genes (LsNAGA1, LsSGPP, and LsSMS) were significantly upregulated in viruliferous third-instar and fourth-instar nymphs, respectively. HPLC-MS/MS results showed that RSV infection increased the levels of various ceramides, such as Cer18:0, Cer20:0, and Cer22:0 species, in third and fourth instar L. striatellus nymphs. Together, these results demonstrate that RSV infection alters the transcript levels of various sphingolipid enzymes and the contents of sphingolipids in L. striatellus, indicating that sphingolipids may be important for RSV infection or replication in L. striatellus.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Full text of article
Database assignments for author(s): Zeng-Rong Zhu

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
transmission/dispersal of plant diseases

---

Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Laodelphax striatellus	Rice (Oryza)
	Tenuivirus oryzaclavatae	Rice (Oryza)