Compared with wild-type, Toll-7g1-5/Df(2R)BSC22 mutant flies exhibit diminished survival and elevated viral titers after infection with Rift Valley Fever Virus (RVFV). Infection with either Drosophila C virus (DCV), Flockhouse virus (FHV), or Sindbis virus (SINV) results in no change in survival of the mutants relative to controls. Rapamycin treatment of the mutants reduced viral RNA to amounts similar to those detected in control flies.
Toll-7g1-5/Df(2R)BSC22 flies that have been challenged with vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) show significantly increased levels of viral replication compared to that seen in wild-type controls. The flies show reduced survival compared to control flies after infection with VSV.