in yellow fever virus infection converting this bacterium in an excellent promise for YFV and CHIKV suppression. Wolbachia also inhibits the secretion of West Nile virus (WNV) in cell line Aag2 derived from A. aegypti cells. The mechanism is somewhat novel, as the bacteria actually enhances the production of viral genomic RNA in the cell line Wolbachia. Also, the antiviral effect in intrathoracically infected mosquitoes depends on the strain of Wolbachia, and the replication of the virus in orally fed mosquitoes was completely inhibited in wMelPop strain of Wolbachia. The effect of Wolbachia infection on virus replication in insect hosts is complex and depends on the Wolbachia strain and virus species. While several studies have indicated consistent refractory phenotypes of Wolbachia infection on positive-sense RNA viruses in Drosophila melanogaster, the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti and the Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus. This effect is not seen in DNA virus infection and in some cases Wolbachia infection has been associated or shown to increase single stranded DNA and double-stranded DNA virus infection. There is also currently no evidence that Wolbachia infection restricts any tested negative-sense RNA viruses indicating Wolbachia would be unsuitable for restriction of negative-sense RNA arthropod borne viruses. Wolbachia infection can also increase mosquito resistance to malaria, as shown in Anopheles stephensi where the wAlbB strain of Wolbachia hindered the lifecycle of Plasmodium falciparum. However, Wolbachia infections can enhance pathogen transmission. Wolbachia has enhanced multiple arboviruses in Culex tarsalis mosquitoes. In another study, West Nile Virus (WNV) infection rate was significantly higher in Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes compared to controls. Wolbachia may induce reactive oxygen species–dependent activation of the Toll (gene family) pathway, which is essential for activation of antimicrobial peptides, defensins, and cecropins that help to inhibit virus proliferation. Conversely, certain strains actually dampen the pathway, leading to higher replication of viruses. One example is with strain wAlbB in Culex tarsalis, where infected mosquitoes actually carried the west nile virus (WNV) more frequently. This is because wAlbB inhibits REL1, an activator of the antiviral Toll immune pathway. As a result, careful studies of the Wolbachia strain and ecological consequences must be done before releasing artificially-infected mosquitoes in the environment. Deployments In 2016 it was proposed to combat the spread of the Zika virus by breeding and releasing mosquitoes that have intentionally been infected with an appropriate strain of Wolbachia. A contemporary study has shown that Wolbachia has the ability