Immunofluorescent Labeling of Plant Virus and Insect Vector Proteins in Hemipteran Guts.

Lu Zhang, Wenwen Liu, Xifeng Wang

Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE 2021 May 14

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Most plant viruses in nature are transmitted from one plant to another by hemipteran insects. A high population density of the vector insects that are highly efficient at virus transmission plays a key role in virus epidemics in fields. Studying virus-insect vector interactions can advance our understanding of virus transmission and epidemics with the aim of designing novel strategies to control plant viruses and their vector insects. Immunofluorescence labeling has been widely used to analyze interactions between pathogens and hosts and is used here in the white-backed planthopper (WBPH, Sogatella furcifera), which efficiently transmits the southern rice black streaked dwarf virus (SRBSDV, genus Fijivirus, family Reoviridae), to locate the virions and insect proteins in the midgut epithelial cells. Using laser scanning confocal microscopy, we studied the morphological characteristics of midgut epithelial cells, cellular localization of insect proteins, and the colocalization of virions and an insect protein. This protocol can be used to study virus activities in insects, functions of insect proteins, and interactions between virus and vector insect.

Citation

Lu Zhang, Wenwen Liu, Xifeng Wang. Immunofluorescent Labeling of Plant Virus and Insect Vector Proteins in Hemipteran Guts. Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE. 2021 May 14(171)