Reassortment of La Crosse and Tahyna bunyaviruses in Aedes triseriatus mosquitoes

Abstract

Experiments were conducted to determine if La Crosse (LAC) and Tahyna (TAH) viruses reassort in Aedes triseriatus mosquitoes and to determine the genotypic frequencies of viruses selected by in vivo vector interactions. A molecular hybridization technique was used to analyze progeny viruses. Probes specific for the La Crosse L, M and S segments (pLAC4.16: LAC L RNA; pLAC4.27: LAC M RNA; pLAC4C-26: LAC S RNA) were used to determine the parental origin of the progeny RNA segments. Following infection with a mixture of LAC and TAH viruses, mosquitoes were held for 23 days extrinsic incubation, then assayed for reassortment. Individual progeny viruses were isolated by plaque assay and propagated in BHK-21 cells. Cytoplasmic RNA was extracted from the cells, blotted in triplicate to Nytran, and each blot was hybridized with 32P-labelled pLAC4.16, pLAC4.27 or pLAC4C-26 to determine the parental origin of each RNA segment. High frequency reassortment occurred in these mosquitoes. All of the expected genotypes resulting from a cross of LAC and TAH were obtained from these mosquitoes. Genotypic frequencies of 708 virus isolates from 39 mosquitoes were: LLL, 150 (21%); LLT, 71 (10%); LTL, 39 (5.5%); LTT, 109 (15%); TTT, 259 (36%); TTL, 16 (2.2%); TLT, 55 (7.8%); TLL, 9 (1.2%).