A salivary chitinase of Varroa destructor influences host immunity and mite’s survival

• DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1009075
• Publication Date: 2020-12-04T20:23:46Z
• Authors: Andrea Becchimanzi; Rosarita Tatè; Ewan M. Campbell; Silvia Gigliotti; Alan S. Bowman; Francesco Pennacchio
• Keywords: Destructor

Varroa destructor is an ectoparasite of honey bees and active disease vector, which represents one the most severe threats for beekeeping industry. This parasitic mite feeds on host’s body fluids through a wound in cuticle, allows food uptake by mother its progeny, offering potential route entrance infecting microorganisms. Mite feeding associated with saliva injection, whose role still largely unknown. Here we try to fill this gap identifying putative host regulation factors present V . performing functional analysis them, chitinase (Vd-CHIsal) phylogenetically related chitinases predatory arthropods, shows specific very high level expression mite’s salivary glands. Vd-CHIsal essential effective survival, since it apparently involved both maintaining open preventing infection opportunistic pathogens. Our results show important modulation mite-honey bee interactions exerted factor shared different evolutionary lineages arthropods. We predict that characterization sialome will provide new background knowledge parasitism evolution arthropods opportunity develop bioinspired strategies control based disruption their complex living source.