Cell-Autonomous and Non-Cell-Autonomous Antiviral Immunity via siRNA-Directed RNAi in Drosophila melanogaster

Abstract

In Drosophila melanogaster, the siRNA-directed RNAi pathway provides crucial antiviral defenses. Cell-autonomously, Dicer-2 (Dcr-2) recognizes and cleaves viral dsRNA into siRNAs, which are incorporated into the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC). Argonaute 2 (Ago2) then targets and cleaves viral RNA, preventing replication. Non-cell-autonomously, infected hemocytes secrete exosomes containing viral siRNAs, spreading antiviral signals to other cells. Additionally, tunneling nanotubes can transfer RNAi components between neighboring cells, further enhancing systemic immunity. These findings highlight the sophisticated antiviral strategies in Drosophila, offering insights for broader antiviral research.

Keywords

RNAi / siRNA / Antiviral immunity / Cell autonomous / Non-cell autonomous / Dcr-2 / Drosophila melanogaster

Acknowledgments

I apologize for any citations that were omitted due to inadvertent oversight and the specific focus of this review. I would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their thoughtful comments and constructive feedbacks, which have significantly improved the quality of this manuscript.

Ethics Statement

Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement

Not applicable.

Funding

This research was supported (in part) by the Intramural Research Program of the NIMH.

Declaration of Competing Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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