Characterization and analysis of micro-RNAs in the parasitic mite Varroa destructor

Presenting Author(s)

Deepak Kumar

Postdoctoral researcher
The University of Southern Mississippi
Hattiesburg, Mississippi, United States

Co-Author(s)

MA

Mohamed Alburaki

Research Entomologist
USDA Beltsville Bee Research Lab
Beltsville, Maryland, United States
FT

Faizan Tahir

Graduate Student
University of Southern Mississippi
Hattiesburg, Mississippi, United States
MG

Michael Goblirsch

Research Entomologist
USDA, ARS Southern Horticultural Research Unit
POPLARVILLE, Mississippi, United States
JA

John J. Adamczyk, Jr.

Supervisory Research Entomologist
USDA, ARS, Southern Horticultural Res. Unit, Poplarville, MS
Poplarville, Mississippi, United States
Shahid Karim

Professor
The University of Southern Mississippi
Hattiesburg, Mississippi, United States

Varroa mite (Varroa destructor) is a highly adapted honey bee ectoparasite causing significant damages to honey bee health and development, and a very efficient vector for the transmission of bee viruses including Deformed Wing Virus (DWV). Micro-RNAs (miRNA) are small, regulatory, non-coding RNA of ̴ 22-25 nucleotides, that are produced by all plants, animals, and some viruses; involved in regulating post-transcriptional gene expression influencing several biological processes. Knowledge of miRNAs and their functional role in mite biology remains limited. In this study, we prepared small RNA libraries from male and female Varroa and get sequenced on Illumina small RNA-Seq platform. Several novel microRNAs were identified by using MirDeep2 algorithm. The expression of selected differentially regulated novel miRNAs were validated by qPCR assay. Characterization and target gene analysis of novel miRNAs in Varroa mite will be further discussed in the context of mite biology.