RNA virome analysis of hematophagous Chironomoidea flies (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae and Simuliidae) collected in Tokyo, Japan

Abstract

e development of sequencing technologies, in recent years, gives novel insights into the diversity of viruses in arthropods. Human pathogenic or possible pathogenic arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) including novel viruses from mosquitoes and ticks have been found by RNA virome analysis using a high-throughput sequencer. However, virome studies for other blood-sucking arthropods like biting midges as well as black ies are relatively scarce. In this study, to nd viruses in hematophagous Chironomoidea ies, we performed RNA virome analyses of eld-caught female Culicoides arakawae and Simulium aureohirtum as a pilot study. In the analyses, six novel viruses belonging to ve virus taxa were detected, showing that RNA virome analysis using the next-generation sequencer was a strong method for understanding the viruses in both biting midges and black ies. is study indicated that C. arakawae and S. aureohirtum, which are not a popular vector for human pathogenic viruses, have a variety of viruses which are as many as other important vectors including mosquitoes and ticks. Furthermore, RNA virome analysis of a variety of blood-sucking insects will aid in not only discovering novel arboviruses but also understanding novel importance for arboviral vectors.