A proteomic approach to uncover Deformed Wing Virus-honey bee interactions

Honey bee pollination is important for maintaining ecosystems, however the colony losses is a big problem still poorly understood. A specific causal agent has not been identified, but the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor, which feeds on honey bee haemolymph, and the vectored viral pathogens, in particular the Deformed Wing Virus (DWV), seem to play a key-role in the induction of this syndrome. DWV is an RNA virus, with a virion made of 3 subunits, VP1, VP2, and VP3, which are arranged into a capsid with icosahedral symmetry. VP1 is the most abundant protein and may play a role on virus introduction, however very little is known regarding the mechanisms of viral infection. The identification of host proteins interacting with the viral proteins may help to better understand the infection process. To date, no studies on interactions among DWV and bee proteins are available. We performed coimmunoprecipitation experiments coupled with mass spectrometry approaches to identify honey bee proteins associated with VP1. The data analysis showed that most of identified bee proteins are involved in fundamental biological processes which may have a potential role in the viral infection.