Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) applications against major insect pests and disease vectors rely on the cost-effective production of high-quality sterile males. This largely depends on the optimal management of target ...Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) applications against major insect pests and disease vectors rely on the cost-effective production of high-quality sterile males. This largely depends on the optimal management of target pest colonies by maximizing the benefits provided by a genetically rich and pathogen-free mother colony, the presence of symbiotic microorganisms, and efficient domestication, mass-rearing, irradiation, and release processes. At the same time microbial (bacteria, fungi, microsporidia, and viruses) pathogen outbreaks should be minimized or eliminated, and the use of hazardous chemicals restricted. The optimization of the colony management strategies for different SIT target insects will ensure a standardized high-quality mass-rearing process and the cost-effective production of sterile males with enhanced field performance and male mating competitiveness. The aims of the Coordinated Research Project (CRP) were to develop best practices for insect colony management for the cost-effective production of high-quality sterile males for SIT applications against major insect pests and disease vectors through a multidisciplinary approach involving entomologists, geneticists, ecologists, microbiologists, pathologists, virologists, and mass-rearing experts.展开更多
Tsetse flies(Glossina spp.)can vector the parasites(Trypanosoma spp.)that cause the socioeconomically devastating neglected tropical diseases human and animal African trypanosomoses.In addition to this parasite,tsetse...Tsetse flies(Glossina spp.)can vector the parasites(Trypanosoma spp.)that cause the socioeconomically devastating neglected tropical diseases human and animal African trypanosomoses.In addition to this parasite,tsetse can harbor four genera of endosymbiotic bacteria,including Wigglesworthia,Sodalis,Wolbachia,and Spiroplasma,which are functionally crucial for the fly's physiological homeostasis and/or are potentially useful for the development of disease control strategies.Recent discoveries indicate that Spiroplasma infection negatively impacts tsetse fecundity.Conversely,housing the bacterium can benefit its fly host by making it unusually refractory to infection with parasitic African trypanosomes.In this study,we assessed the physiological impact of Spiroplasma infection on a laboratory colony of Glossina fuscipes fuscipes(Gff).For this purpose,two distinct Gff colonies were established:a Spi–colony that harbors a low Spiroplasma infection prevalence and a Spi+colony that harbors a high Spiroplasma infection prevalence.Fitness parameters for both colonies revealed no significant differences in the length of larval development,adult eclosion rate,and flight propensity.However,flies from the Spi+colony presented with lower fecundity and higher overall mortality than did individuals from the Spi–colony.Furthermore,males from the Spi–colony exhibited a competitive mating advantage over their Spi+counterparts in a field cage setting.These findings have potential implications for the improvement of mass-rearing of Gff for sterile insect technique(SIT)applications.展开更多
Tsetse(Glossina spp.)are vectors of African trypanosomes that cause devastating human and animal African trypanosomiases.While much of the research to better understand tsetse genetics and physiology relies on colony-...Tsetse(Glossina spp.)are vectors of African trypanosomes that cause devastating human and animal African trypanosomiases.While much of the research to better understand tsetse genetics and physiology relies on colony-reared flies,these flies may not represent the genetic diversity found in natural wild populations due to their long-term captivity.To enhance the translation of colony research into field applications,we utilized Nanopore sequencing to assemble genomes for a wild-caught female Glossina fuscipes fuscipes(Gff)from northwestern Uganda and for a female Gff from a laboratory line originally sourced from the Central African Republic in 1986.The new assemblies,from the wild-caught Gff(405.98 Mb,N50:56.86 Mb)and the laboratory-derived Gff(398.22 Mb,N50:47.811 Mb),demonstrate near-chromosomal level contiguity,high BUSCO scores(>99.5%),high QV scores(>37),and over 12345 genes.Alignments between both new genomes reveal conserved synteny with only minor structural variants in the X,1L,1R,2L,and 2R tsetse chromosomes.While most orthologs(10730)were shared between both new genomes,we identified 381 unique orthologs and a small number of highly diverged shared single-copy homologs(3.84%).These gene-set differences could represent population-level variation due to the distinct geographic origin of these flies or adaptation to colony conditions.Our new high-quality genomes,with improvements in contiguity and completeness compared to the current NCBI RefSeq Gff genome,lay the foundation for advanced tsetse research,enabling robust lab-to-field translational applications to deepen our understanding of vector biology and disease transmission dynamics.展开更多
文摘Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) applications against major insect pests and disease vectors rely on the cost-effective production of high-quality sterile males. This largely depends on the optimal management of target pest colonies by maximizing the benefits provided by a genetically rich and pathogen-free mother colony, the presence of symbiotic microorganisms, and efficient domestication, mass-rearing, irradiation, and release processes. At the same time microbial (bacteria, fungi, microsporidia, and viruses) pathogen outbreaks should be minimized or eliminated, and the use of hazardous chemicals restricted. The optimization of the colony management strategies for different SIT target insects will ensure a standardized high-quality mass-rearing process and the cost-effective production of sterile males with enhanced field performance and male mating competitiveness. The aims of the Coordinated Research Project (CRP) were to develop best practices for insect colony management for the cost-effective production of high-quality sterile males for SIT applications against major insect pests and disease vectors through a multidisciplinary approach involving entomologists, geneticists, ecologists, microbiologists, pathologists, virologists, and mass-rearing experts.
文摘Tsetse flies(Glossina spp.)can vector the parasites(Trypanosoma spp.)that cause the socioeconomically devastating neglected tropical diseases human and animal African trypanosomoses.In addition to this parasite,tsetse can harbor four genera of endosymbiotic bacteria,including Wigglesworthia,Sodalis,Wolbachia,and Spiroplasma,which are functionally crucial for the fly's physiological homeostasis and/or are potentially useful for the development of disease control strategies.Recent discoveries indicate that Spiroplasma infection negatively impacts tsetse fecundity.Conversely,housing the bacterium can benefit its fly host by making it unusually refractory to infection with parasitic African trypanosomes.In this study,we assessed the physiological impact of Spiroplasma infection on a laboratory colony of Glossina fuscipes fuscipes(Gff).For this purpose,two distinct Gff colonies were established:a Spi–colony that harbors a low Spiroplasma infection prevalence and a Spi+colony that harbors a high Spiroplasma infection prevalence.Fitness parameters for both colonies revealed no significant differences in the length of larval development,adult eclosion rate,and flight propensity.However,flies from the Spi+colony presented with lower fecundity and higher overall mortality than did individuals from the Spi–colony.Furthermore,males from the Spi–colony exhibited a competitive mating advantage over their Spi+counterparts in a field cage setting.These findings have potential implications for the improvement of mass-rearing of Gff for sterile insect technique(SIT)applications.
基金support provided by the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture,Insect Pest Control Subprograms under the CRP D4201supported with funding from Ambrose Monell Foundation(to SA),and National Institutes of Health(R01AI068932 and R01AI139525 to SA)National Institutes of Health(R21AI163969 to SA and BW).
文摘Tsetse(Glossina spp.)are vectors of African trypanosomes that cause devastating human and animal African trypanosomiases.While much of the research to better understand tsetse genetics and physiology relies on colony-reared flies,these flies may not represent the genetic diversity found in natural wild populations due to their long-term captivity.To enhance the translation of colony research into field applications,we utilized Nanopore sequencing to assemble genomes for a wild-caught female Glossina fuscipes fuscipes(Gff)from northwestern Uganda and for a female Gff from a laboratory line originally sourced from the Central African Republic in 1986.The new assemblies,from the wild-caught Gff(405.98 Mb,N50:56.86 Mb)and the laboratory-derived Gff(398.22 Mb,N50:47.811 Mb),demonstrate near-chromosomal level contiguity,high BUSCO scores(>99.5%),high QV scores(>37),and over 12345 genes.Alignments between both new genomes reveal conserved synteny with only minor structural variants in the X,1L,1R,2L,and 2R tsetse chromosomes.While most orthologs(10730)were shared between both new genomes,we identified 381 unique orthologs and a small number of highly diverged shared single-copy homologs(3.84%).These gene-set differences could represent population-level variation due to the distinct geographic origin of these flies or adaptation to colony conditions.Our new high-quality genomes,with improvements in contiguity and completeness compared to the current NCBI RefSeq Gff genome,lay the foundation for advanced tsetse research,enabling robust lab-to-field translational applications to deepen our understanding of vector biology and disease transmission dynamics.
