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Kron NS, Neuman BW, Kumar S, Blackwelder PL, Vidal D, Walker-Phelan DZ, Gibbs PDI, Fieber LA, Schmale MC. Expression dynamics of the aplysia abyssovirus. Virology 2024; 589:109890. [PMID: 37951086 PMCID: PMC10842508 DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2023.109890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Revised: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 11/13/2023]
Abstract
Two recent studies documented the genome of a novel, extremely large (35.9 kb), nidovirus in RNA sequence databases from the marine neural model Aplysia californica. The goal of the present study was to document the distribution and transcriptional dynamics of this virus, Aplysia abyssovirus 1 (AAbV), in maricultured and wild animals. We confirmed previous findings that AAbV RNA is widespread and reaches extraordinary levels in apparently healthy animals. Transmission electron microscopy identified viral replication factories in ciliated gill epithelial cells but not in neurons where viral RNA is most highly expressed. Viral transcripts do not exhibit evidence of discontinuous RNA synthesis as in coronaviruses but are consistent with production of a single leaderless subgenomic RNA, as in the Gill-associated virus of Penaeus monodon. Splicing patterns in chronically infected adults suggested high levels of defective genomes, possibly explaining the lack of obvious disease signs in high viral load animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas S Kron
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Cswy, Miami, FL, USA, 33149.
| | - Benjamin W Neuman
- Department of Biology, Department of Molecular Pathogenesis and Immunology and Division of Research, Texas A&M University, 400 Bizzell St., College Station, TX, USA, 77843
| | - Sathish Kumar
- Department of Biology, Department of Molecular Pathogenesis and Immunology and Division of Research, Texas A&M University, 400 Bizzell St., College Station, TX, USA, 77843
| | - Patricia L Blackwelder
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Cswy, Miami, FL, USA, 33149; University of Miami Center for Advanced Microscopy, University of Miami, 142B Physics, Coral Gables, FL, USA, 33146
| | - Dayana Vidal
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Cswy, Miami, FL, USA, 33149
| | - Delphina Z Walker-Phelan
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington, South Lake Union E-411 750 Republican St. UW Box 358059, Seattle, WA, 98109, USA
| | - Patrick D I Gibbs
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Cswy, Miami, FL, USA, 33149
| | - Lynne A Fieber
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Cswy, Miami, FL, USA, 33149
| | - Michael C Schmale
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Cswy, Miami, FL, USA, 33149
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