Project description:In order to study heme-induced global transcriptional changes, we performed a transcriptome-wide analysis of heme influence on the A. aegypti cell line Aag2. As heme-mediated effects on gene expression are thought to be related to oxidative stress, we compared the transcriptional profiles of Aag2 cells challenged with either 50 µM heme or 100 µM of the ROS inducer paraquat, using whole genome microarrays.
Project description:The study provides a comparative of transcript levels in uninfected and CHIKV-infected Aedes aegypti derived Aag2 cells using RNA Seq
Project description:MicroRNAs (miRNA) have alternative forms known as isomiRs, which differ from each other by a few nucleotides. Next generation sequencing platforms facilitate identification of these isomiRs and recent discoveries regarding their functional importance have increased our understandings of the regulatory complexities of the microRNAome. Observed changes in the miRNA profiles in mosquitoes infected with flaviviruses have implicated small RNAs in the interactions between viruses and their vectors. Here we analysed the isomiR profiles of both uninfected and infected blood fed Aedes aegypti mosquitoes with a major human pathogen, Dengue virus at two time points post-infection. We found noticeable changes to the isomiR expression profile in response to infection and aging. Data analysis revealed a distinct bias towards isomiR production in the mature miRNA as opposed to the star strand. Furthermore, we noticed that only in 40% of Ae. aegypti miRNAs, the most abundant reads for each particular miRNA match the exact sequence reported in the miRbase. The isomiR expression variations between an Ae. aegypti embryonic cell line (Aag2) and whole mosquitoes demonstrated a tissue-specific pattern of isomiR production. Our results illustrated a bias for certain types of isomiRs for each miRNA. The findings presented in this study also provide evidence that isomiR production is not a random phenomenon and may be important in DENV colonisation of its vector.
