Abstract
A novel baculovirus observed to infect Automeris liberia (Cramer) (bullseye moth) is here described. Caterpillars of A. liberia with symptoms of viral infection were collected from African oil palm plantations in Tailândia, PA, Brazil. Macerated caterpillars were then offered to caterpillars of Automeris cinctistriga (Felder & Rogenhoper), leading to viral symptoms and death before pupation. A transmission electron microscope was used for virus ultrastructural identification. The presence of viral occlusion bodies (OBs) containing multiple nucleocapsids was observed and such features are compatible with Alphabaculovirus (Baculoviridae). Molecular detection by PCR with primers for polyhedrin gene (polh) and for late expression factor-8 gene (lef-8), confirmed that this isolate belonged to Alphabaculovirus genus. To our knowledge, this is the first record of a baculovirus isolated from or associated to Automeris. The name Automeris liberia nucleopolyhedrovirus (AuliNPV) is proposed for the new virus.
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Acknowledgements
Authors are grateful to Grupo Agropalma S/A (Tailândia, PA, Brazil), for supporting insect collections in the field; to Ana Cristina Meneses Gomes, Embrapa Recursos Genéticos e Biotecnologia (Brasília, DF, Brazil), for electron microscope sample processing; and to Dr. Bergmann Morais Ribeiro, Universidade de Brasília – UnB (Brasília, DF, Brazil), for assisting with electron microscope imaging.
Funding
This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES)—Finance Code 001 and also by Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (Code 11.15.02.001.03.05).
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KB Silva, CB Silva, GS Chia, and RS Tinôco collected the sick insects. EC Guzzo and JPM Acevedo isolated the virus and performed Koch’s postulates protocol. ML Souza and MM Sanches purified the virus, supported electron microscopy, and performed molecular analysis. AEG Santana and HF Goulart acquired funding for the project. KB Silva, EC Guzzo, MM Sanches, and ML Souza wrote the first draft of the manuscript. All authors commented on previous versions, read, and approved the final manuscript.
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Guzzo, E.C., Silva, K.B., Silva, C.B. et al. Isolation of a Novel Alphabaculovirus (Baculoviridae) from Automeris liberia (Cramer, 1780) (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) in African Oil Palms in Brazil. Neotrop Entomol 51, 637–640 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-021-00940-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-021-00940-9