Abstract
Chalkbrood, a destructive larval disease caused by the fungal pathogen , causes substantial losses in apiculture. Although host-pathogen interactions in larvae infected with have been investigated, immune defense mechanisms in the Asian honey bee remain unclear. This study examined whether the lncRNA6470/ace-miR-750-y axis modulates the response of larvae to infection. Stem-loop RT-PCR, Sanger sequencing, dual-luciferase reporter assays, RNA interference, and RT-qPCR were used to characterize ace-miR-750-y, lncRNA6470, , host immune genes, and selected genes associated with signal transduction, transcriptional regulation, and RNA metabolism. Larval survival and chalkbrood incidence were also evaluated after ncRNA perturbation. ace-miR-750-y was expressed in larval guts and showed infection-associated expression changes. Computational prediction identified 214 candidate mRNA targets and 143 candidate lncRNA interactors of ace-miR-750-y, from which the lncRNA6470/ace-miR-750-y/ axis was selected for experimental validation. Modulation of ace-miR-750-y significantly affected expression. ace-miR-750-y overexpression increased host immune genes associated with antimicrobial peptide production and peroxidase activity, whereas its inhibition reduced their expression. Modulation of ace-miR-750-y was also associated with altered expression of selected genes and changes in larval survival and chalkbrood incidence. These findings suggest that ace-miR-750-y may play an important regulatory role in the immune response of worker larvae to infection, and that its interaction with lncRNA6470 may contribute to ceRNA-like regulation during fungal challenge.
Citation
ID:
284498
Ref Key:
xiaoxue2026lncrna6470acemir750y