title: VLPs of Leptopilina boulardi share biogenesis and overall stellate morphology with VLPs of the heterotoma clade.
abstract: Viruses and virus-like particles (VLPs) of insect parasitoids modify host-parasite interactions. The Drosophila wasp, Leptopilina heterotoma, produce 300 nm spiked VLPs that bind to the host's blood cells via surface projections. L. heterotoma is a generalist wasp that attacks over a dozen Drosophila species. Oviposition introduces VLPs into the hemolymph of Drosophila larvae. VLPs lyse hemocytes and obliterate immune signaling in infected larval hosts. L. boulardi, a member of a distinct Leptopilina clade, is a specialist, whose host range is limited to the melanogaster group. As a step toward understanding a potential relationship between venom contents and host range in these wasps, we used electron microscopy to characterize VLPs from the virulent L. boulardi-17 (Lb-17) strain. While the Lb-17 VLPs can neither lyse blood cells nor suppress host defense, their biogenesis is surprisingly similar to that of L. heterotoma. Like L. heterotoma VLPs, L. boulardi VLPs are stellate; but they have fewer spikes, each spike being significantly longer than the spikes in L. heterotoma VLPs. The Lb-17 VLPs possess a dimple, making them clearly distinct from L. heterotoma VLPs. We discuss the significance of these cross-clade differences in VLP morphologies in relation to their biological activities and the host range of the wasp.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, The City College of New York, 138th Street and Convent Avenue, New York, NY 10031, USA.
authors.forename: Gwenaelle
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gueguen
authors.forename: Roma
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rajwani
authors.forename: Indira
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Paddibhatla
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Morales
authors.forename: Shubha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Govind
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004330:Drosophila / Q000469:parasitology / Q000821:virology; D020062:Heteroptera / Q000821:virology*; D006927:Hymenoptera / Q000821:virology*; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D010802:Phylogeny; D022701:Virosomes / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure*
chemical_list: D022701:Virosomes