Infection characteristics of Solenopsis invicta virus 2 in the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta

Solenopsis invicta virus 2 (SINV-2) is the second virus identified from the fire ant, S. invicta Buren. SINV-2 is unique among positive-strand RNA viruses from insects by possessing four cistrons in a monopartite genome. Fire ant colonies testing positive for SINV-2 by RT-PCR did not exhibit any discernable symptoms. RT-PCR-based surveys for SINV-2 among 688 fire ant mounds in Alachua County, Florida, sampled during the period January, 2006 through December, 2007 showed that the prevalence of SINV-2 among nests ranged from 1.6% to 16.4%. Unlike S. invicta virus 1, no seasonal-associated prevalence was observed with regard to SINV-2 infection among fire ant colonies. No social form specificity was evident; SINV-2 was found in both monogyne and polygyne S. invicta ants. Real-time quantitative PCR experiments showed that SINV-2 genome equivalents per individual ant ranged from 1.9 × 10⁷ in. pupae to 4.3 × 10¹¹ in. inseminated queens. The SINV-2 infection was detected in all ant stages examined (eggs, larvae, pupae, workers, and queens). Tissue tropism studies indicated that the alimentary canal (specifically the midgut) is most likely the susceptible tissue. SINV-2 was successfully transmitted to uninfected S. invicta ants by feeding a partially purified homogenate of SINV-2-infected ants. The SINV-2 transmission rate ranged from 30% to 80%, and both positive (genomic) and negative (replicative) SINV-2 RNA strands accumulated in recipient ants over the course of the experiment. These results indicated that SINV-2 replicates within S. invicta.