2026-10-14T11:40:20Z https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai

oai:figshare.com:article/33483423 2026-09-15T01:45:33Z category_4 category_7 category_12 category_13 category_14 category_272 category_46 category_61 category_122 category_132 category_133 category_134 portal_87 item_type_3 month_year_09_2026

Endogenous RNA virus–derived elements exhibit functional divergence in modulating development and virus susceptibility in <i>Bombyx mori</i> Ma-Cheng Zhang (24736932) Yi-Lan Li (15953559) Shuo Yang (209399) Peng Wang (34436) Yao Xu (247302) He-Ying Qian (24736935) Biochemistry Medicine Cell Biology Genetics Molecular Biology Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified Immunology Developmental Biology Mental Health Infectious Diseases Plant Biology Virology Bombyx mori Non-retroviral endogenous viral elements larval development antiviral immunity Nanoparticle-mediated RNAi <p>Non-retroviral endogenous viral elements (nrEVEs) are increasingly recognized as potential regulators of host biology, but their functional roles in Lepidoptera remain largely unexplored. Here, we identified seven nrEVEs derived from four RNA virus families in <i>Bombyx mori</i>. All seven nrEVEs were transcriptionally active and exhibited distinct developmental and tissue-specific expression patterns. Their small-RNA profiling revealed that these elements could generate small interfering RNA (siRNA)-like RNAs, primary PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA)-like RNAs, or ping-pong-associated piRNAs. Functional analyses of the <i>Totiviridae-</i>derived BmToEVE and the <i>Chuviridae</i>-derived BmChuEVE3 revealed markedly divergent physiological roles. Depletion of either nrEVE delayed larval development and reduced body weight, while differentially affecting reproductive and cocoon traits. Yeast two-hybrid screening and transcriptomic analyses further implicated both nrEVEs with cuticle-associated and reproductive processes. Importantly, BmChuEVE3 knockdown broadly suppressed metabolic and immune responses, accompanied by increased <i>B.mori nucleopolyhedrovirus</i> (BmNPV) and <i>cypovirus</i> (BmCPV). By contrast, BmToEVE silencing markedly reduced BmNPV accumulation and enhanced host defense-related transcriptional responses. Its effect on BmCPV was comparatively modest and emerged only at the later infection stage. Overall, our findings reveal functional diversification of silkworm nrEVEs and highlight the contribution of virus-derived sequences to developmental regulation and antiviral physiology in a lepidopteran host.</p> 2026-09-15T01:45:33Z Dataset Dataset 10.6084/m9.figshare.33483423.v2 https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Endogenous_RNA_virus_Derived_elements_exhibit_functional_divergence_in_modulating_development_and_virus_susceptibility_in_i_Bombyx_mori_i_/33483423 CC BY 4.0