The duck genome and transcriptome provide insight into an avian influenza virus reservoir species (from Nature Genetics]

Nature Genetics  (2013)

doi:10.1038/ng.2657

Received  16 December 2012

Accepted  08 May 2013

Published online  09 June 2013 

 

Abstract:

The duck (Anas platyrhynchos) is one of the principal natural hosts of influenza A viruses. We present the duck genome sequence and perform deep transcriptome analyses to investigate immune-related genes. Our data indicate that the duck possesses a contractive immune gene repertoire, as in chicken and zebra finch, and this repertoire has been shaped through lineage-specific duplications. We identify genes that are responsive to influenza A viruses using the lung transcriptomes of control ducks and ones that were infected with either a highly pathogenic (A/duck/Hubei/49/05) or a weakly pathogenic (A/goose/Hubei/65/05) H5N1 virus. Further, we show how the duck's defense mechanisms against influenza infection have been optimized through the diversification of its β-defensin and butyrophilin-like repertoires. These analyses, in combination with the genomic and transcriptomic data, provide a resource for characterizing the interaction between host and influenza viruses.

Full Article:  http://www.nature.com/ng/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/ng.2657.html