Silencing of rice stripe virus in Laodelphax striatellus using virus-derived double-stranded RNAs

Rice stripe virus (RSV) is one of the serious plant pathogenic viruses for rice and transmitted by small brown planthopper, Laodelphax striatellus. RNA interference (RNAi) is an innate defense mechanism against viral infection in eukaryotic organisms including insects. To disturb transmission of the RSV in L. striatellus using RNAi pathway, RSV-derived dsRNAs were applied to the insects indirectly through rice leaves by irrigation. As a result, replication of RSV in L. striatellus ingested RSV-derived dsRNAs was reduced in dose-dependent manner, suggesting that these dsRNA could induce innate antiviral RNAi pathway in L. striatellus and therefore suppress replication of RSV.