Investigating the natural resistance of blackfoot Paua Haliotis iris to abalone viral ganglioneuritis using whole transcriptome analysis

(T)he natural resistance of New Zealand blackfoot paua Haliotis iris to infection by haliotid herpesvirus-1 (HaHV-1) and to the disease abalone viral ganglioneuritis was investigated in experimentally challenged paua using high throughput RNA-sequencing. HaHV-1-challenged paua up-regulated broad classes of genes that contained chitin-binding peritrophin-A domains, which seem to play diverse roles in the paua immune response. The paua also up-regulated vascular adhesion protein-1 (VAP-1), an important adhesion molecule for lymphocytes, and chitotriosidase- 1 (CHIT-1), an immunologically important gene in mammalian immune systems. Moreover, several blood coagulation pathways were dysregulated in the paua, possibly indicating viral modulation. We also saw several indications that neurological tissues were specifically affected by HaHV-1, including the dysregulation of beta-1,4-N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase (B4GALNT), GM2 ganglioside, neuroligin-4 and the Notch signalling pathway. This research may support the development of molecular therapeutics useful to control and/or manage viral outbreaks in abalone culture.