High-Throughput Fluorescence-Based Screen Identifies the Neuronal MicroRNA miR-124 as a Positive Regulator of Alphavirus Infection
Paula de Bautista López, Erika Girardi, Bryan C. Mounce, Amélie Weiss, Béatrice Chane-Woon-Ming, Mélanie Messmer, Pasi Kaukinen, Arnaud Kopp, Diane Bortolamiol-Bécet, Ali Fendri, Marco Vignuzzi, Laurent Brino, Sébastien Pfeffer
Abstract
Arthropod-borne (arbo) viruses are part of a class of pathogens that are transmitted to their final hosts by insects. Because of climate change, the habitat of some of these insects, such as mosquitoes, is shifting, thereby facilitating the emergence of viral epidemics. Among the pathologies associated with arbovirus infection, neurological diseases such as meningitis and encephalitis represent a significant health burden. Using a genome-wide miRNA screen, we identified neuronal miR-124 as a positive regulator of the Sindbis and chikungunya alphaviruses. We also showed that this effect was in part direct, thereby opening novel avenues to treat alphavirus infections.