WSV181 inhibits JAK/STAT signaling and promotes viral replication in Drosophila.

The Janus kinase/signal transducers and activators of transcription pathway plays a critical role in host defense against viral infections. Here, we report the use of the Drosophila model system to investigate the modulation of the pathway by the white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) protein WSV181. WSV181 overexpression in transgenic flies resulted in the downregulation of and genes. This result indicates that WSV181 can suppress JAK/duanyu1813 signaling by controlling duanyu181392E expression. An infection experiment was carried out on transgenic Drosophila infected with Drosophila C virus and on Litopenaeus vannamei injected with recombinant WSV181 and WSSV. The increased viral load and suppressed transcript levels of JAK/duanyu1813 pathway components indicate that WSV181 can promote viral proliferation by inhibiting the JAK/duanyu1813 pathway. This study provided evidence for the role of WSV181 in viral replication and revealed a new mechanism through which WSSV evades host immunity to maintain persistent infection.

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