1
|
Long D, Liu R, Huang Y, Fu A, Zhang Y, Hao Z, Li Q, Xu H, Xiang Z, Zhao A. An efficient and safe strategy for germ cell-specific automatic excision of foreign DNA in F 1 hybrid transgenic silkworms. INSECT SCIENCE 2024; 31:28-46. [PMID: 37356084 DOI: 10.1111/1744-7917.13219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Revised: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/11/2023] [Indexed: 06/27/2023]
Abstract
The safety of transgenic technology is a major obstacle in the popularization and use of transgenic silkworms and their products. In sericulture, only the first filial generation (F1 ) hybrid eggs produced by cross-breeding Japanese and Chinese original strains are usually used for the large-scale breeding of silkworms, but this may result in uncontrolled transgene dispersal during the popularization and application of the F1 hybrid transgenic eggs. To address this issue, we developed a safe and efficient strategy using the GAL4/Upstream activating sequence (UAS) system, the FLP/flippase recognition target (FRT) system, and the gonad-specific expression gene promoters (RSHP1p and Nanosp) for the germ cell-specific automatic excision of foreign DNA in the F1 hybrid transgenic silkworms. We established 2 types of activator strains, R1p::GAL4-Gr and Nsp::GAL4-Gr, containing the testis-specific GAL4 gene expression cassettes driven by RSHP1p or Nanosp, respectively, and 1 type of effector strain, UAS::FLP-Rg, containing the UAS-linked FLP gene expression cassette. The FLP recombinase-mediated sperm-specific complete excision of FRT-flanked target DNA in the F1 double-transgenic silkworms resulting from the hybridization of R1p::GAL4-Gr and UAS::FLP-Rg was 100%, whereas the complete excision efficiency resulting from the hybridization of Nsp::GAL4-Gr and UAS::FLP-Rg ranged from 13.73% to 80.3%. Additionally, we identified a gene, sw11114, that is expressed in both testis and ovary of Bombyx mori, and can be used to establish novel gonad-specific expression systems in transgenic silkworms. This strategy has the potential to fundamentally solve the safety issue in the production of F1 transgenic silkworm eggs and provides an important reference for the safety of transgenic technology in other insect species.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dingpei Long
- State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, Institute of Sericulture and Systems Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Rongpeng Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, Institute of Sericulture and Systems Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Yang Huang
- Department of Biology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
| | - Anyao Fu
- State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, Institute of Sericulture and Systems Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Yuli Zhang
- Guangxi Institute of Sericulture Science, Nanning, Guangxi, China
| | - Zhanzhang Hao
- State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, Institute of Sericulture and Systems Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Qiang Li
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
| | - Hanfu Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, Institute of Sericulture and Systems Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Zhonghuai Xiang
- State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, Institute of Sericulture and Systems Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Aichun Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, Institute of Sericulture and Systems Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Neue Entwicklungen in der Gentechnik - neue Ansätze für das behördliche Handeln? J Verbrauch Lebensm 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s00003-015-0945-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
|
3
|
Haghighat-Khah RE, Scaife S, Martins S, St John O, Matzen KJ, Morrison N, Alphey L. Site-specific cassette exchange systems in the Aedes aegypti mosquito and the Plutella xylostella moth. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0121097. [PMID: 25830287 PMCID: PMC4382291 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0121097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2014] [Accepted: 02/09/2015] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Genetically engineered insects are being evaluated as potential tools to decrease the economic and public health burden of mosquitoes and agricultural pest insects. Here we describe a new tool for the reliable and targeted genome manipulation of pest insects for research and field release using recombinase mediated cassette exchange (RMCE) mechanisms. We successfully demonstrated the established ΦC31-RMCE method in the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti, which is the first report of RMCE in mosquitoes. A new variant of this RMCE system, called iRMCE, combines the ΦC31-att integration system and Cre or FLP-mediated excision to remove extraneous sequences introduced as part of the site-specific integration process. Complete iRMCE was achieved in two important insect pests, Aedes aegypti and the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella, demonstrating the transferability of the system across a wide phylogenetic range of insect pests.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Roya Elaine Haghighat-Khah
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Oxitec Limited, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | | | - Sara Martins
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Oxitec Limited, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Oliver St John
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Oxitec Limited, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | | | | | - Luke Alphey
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Oxitec Limited, Oxford, United Kingdom
- * E-mail: (LA); (KJM)
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
An efficient strategy for producing a stable, replaceable, highly efficient transgene expression system in silkworm, Bombyx mori. Sci Rep 2015; 5:8802. [PMID: 25739894 DOI: 10.1038/srep08802] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2014] [Accepted: 02/04/2015] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
We developed an efficient strategy that combines a method for the post-integration elimination of all transposon sequences, a site-specific recombination system, and an optimized fibroin H-chain expression system to produce a stable, replaceable, highly efficient transgene expression system in the silkworm (Bombyx mori) that overcomes the disadvantages of random insertion and post-integration instability of transposons. Here, we generated four different transgenic silkworm strains, and of one the transgenic strains, designated TS1-RgG2, with up to 16% (w/w) of the target protein in the cocoons, was selected. The subsequent elimination of all the transposon sequences from TS1-RgG2 was completed by the heat-shock-induced expression of the transposase in vivo. The resulting transgenic silkworm strain was designated TS3-g2 and contained only the attP-flanked optimized fibroin H-chain expression cassette in its genome. A phiC31/att-system-based recombinase-mediated cassette exchange (RMCE) method could be used to integrate other genes of interest into the same genome locus between the attP sites in TS3-g2. Controlling for position effects with phiC31-mediated RMCE will also allow the optimization of exogenous protein expression and fine gene function analyses in the silkworm. The strategy developed here is also applicable to other lepidopteran insects, to improve the ecological safety of transgenic strains in biocontrol programs.
Collapse
|
5
|
Wang Y, Tan A, Xu J, Li Z, Zeng B, Ling L, You L, Chen Y, James AA, Huang Y. Site-specific, TALENs-mediated transformation of Bombyx mori. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2014; 55:26-30. [PMID: 25460511 PMCID: PMC4408225 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2014.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2014] [Revised: 10/03/2014] [Accepted: 10/10/2014] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
Transposon-based genetic transformation has facilitated insect functional genomics and new strategies of pest management. However, there is a need for alternative, site-specific approaches to overcome limitations of random integration (and associated position-effects) and potential instability of inserted transgenes. Here we describe a transposon-free, site-specific genetic transformation system mediated by transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs) in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, a lepidopteran model insect. We successfully established a site-specific transgenic system with comparable transformation efficiency to transposon-based genetic transformation through microinjection of TALENs mRNA targeting the BmBLOS2 locus and a linearizable donor plasmid encoding an expression cassette of the DsRed2 red fluorescent protein. This system provides a valuable approach for insect transgenesis and will enable future functional gene analysis and generate novel applications in agricultural and medical insect pest-management technologies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yueqiang Wang
- Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Anjiang Tan
- Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Jun Xu
- Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Zhiqian Li
- Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Baosheng Zeng
- Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Lin Ling
- Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Lang You
- Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Yazhou Chen
- Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Anthony A. James
- Departments of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics and Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697-3900
- Correspondence: Anthony A. James, Tel: +1-949-824-5930; Fax: +1-949-8242814; ; Yongping Huang, Tel: +86-21-54924047; Fax: +86-21-54924015;
| | - Yongping Huang
- Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
- Correspondence: Anthony A. James, Tel: +1-949-824-5930; Fax: +1-949-8242814; ; Yongping Huang, Tel: +86-21-54924047; Fax: +86-21-54924015;
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Eckermann KN, Dippel S, KaramiNejadRanjbar M, Ahmed HM, Curril IM, Wimmer EA. Perspective on the combined use of an independent transgenic sexing and a multifactorial reproductive sterility system to avoid resistance development against transgenic Sterile Insect Technique approaches. BMC Genet 2014; 15 Suppl 2:S17. [PMID: 25471733 PMCID: PMC4255789 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2156-15-s2-s17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is an accepted species-specific genetic control approach that acts as an insect birth control measure, which can be improved by biotechnological engineering to facilitate its use and widen its applicability. First transgenic insects carrying a single killing system have already been released in small scale trials. However, to evade resistance development to such transgenic approaches, completely independent ways of transgenic killing should be established and combined. Perspective Most established transgenic sexing and reproductive sterility systems are based on the binary tTA expression system that can be suppressed by adding tetracycline to the food. However, to create 'redundant killing' an additional independent conditional expression system is required. Here we present a perspective on the use of a second food-controllable binary expression system - the inducible Q system - that could be used in combination with site-specific recombinases to generate independent transgenic killing systems. We propose the combination of an already established transgenic embryonic sexing system to meet the SIT requirement of male-only releases based on the repressible tTA system together with a redundant male-specific reproductive sterility system, which is activated by Q-system controlled site-specific recombination and is based on a spermatogenesis-specifically expressed endonuclease acting on several species-specific target sites leading to chromosome shredding. Conclusion A combination of a completely independent transgenic sexing and a redundant reproductive male sterility system, which do not share any active components and mediate the induced lethality by completely independent processes, would meet the 'redundant killing' criteria for suppression of resistance development and could therefore be employed in large scale long-term suppression programs using biotechnologically enhanced SIT.
Collapse
|
7
|
|
8
|
Highly efficient and specific genome editing in silkworm using custom TALENs. PLoS One 2012; 7:e45035. [PMID: 23028749 PMCID: PMC3445556 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0045035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2012] [Accepted: 08/11/2012] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Establishment of efficient genome editing tools is essential for fundamental research, genetic engineering, and gene therapy. Successful construction and application of transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs) in several organisms herald an exciting new era for genome editing. We describe the production of two active TALENs and their successful application in the targeted mutagenesis of silkworm, Bombyx mori, whose genetic manipulation methods are parallel to those of Drosophila and other insects. We will also show that the simultaneous expression of two pairs of TALENs generates heritable large chromosomal deletion. Our results demonstrate that (i) TALENs can be used in silkworm and (ii) heritable large chromosomal deletions can be induced by two pairs of TALENs in whole organisms. The generation and the high frequency of TALENs-induced targeted mutagenesis in silkworm will promote the genetic modification of silkworm and other insect species.
Collapse
|
9
|
Strategy for enhanced transgenic strain development for embryonic conditional lethality in Anastrepha suspensa. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2012; 109:9348-53. [PMID: 22647610 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1203352109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Here the first reproductive sterility system for the tephritid fruit fly pest, Anastrepha suspensa, is presented, based on lethality primarily limited to embryos heterozygous for a conditional lethal transgene combination. This tetracycline (Tet)-suppressible system uses a driver construct having the promoter from the newly isolated embryo-specific A. suspensa serendipity α gene linked to the Tet-transactivator. This was used to drive expression of a phosphomutated variant of the pro-apoptotic cell death gene, hid, from A. ludens, that was isolated, based on its identity to A. suspensa hid. The Alhid(Ala2) variant was shown to have the highest cell death activity in an in vitro A. suspensa cell death assay compared to the orthologous genes Ashid, Dmhid, and the variant Dmhid(Ala5). These cell death assays also allowed a determination of the most-efficient driver-effector cassette combinations for use in A. suspensa transformants, resulting in two hybrid strains exhibiting 100% lethality. One strain was 96% lethal in embryos in the absence of tetracycline, with none surviving past the first larval instar, which is critical for pests that are most damaging in late-larval stages. We demonstrate that the isolation and in vitro validation of species-specific promoters and lethal effector genes can greatly improve the efficiency of creating high-performance conditional lethality strains that may be extended to other insect pest species.
Collapse
|
10
|
Abstract
The ability to manipulate the genomes of many insects has become a practical reality over the past 15 years. This has been led by the identification of several useful transposon vector systems that have allowed the identification and development of generalized, species-specific, and tissue-specific promoter systems for controlled expression of gene products upon introduction into insect genomes. Armed with these capabilities, researchers have made significant strides in both fundamental and applied transgenics in key model systems such as Bombyx mori, Tribolium casteneum, Aedes aegypti, and Anopheles stephensi. Limitations of transposon systems were identified, and alternative tools were developed, thus significantly increasing the potential for applied transgenics for control of both agricultural and medical insect pests. The next 10 years promise to be an exciting time of transitioning from the laboratory to the field, from basic research to applied control, during which the full potential of gene manipulation in insect systems will ultimately be realized.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Malcolm J Fraser
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556-0369, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Tkachuk A, Kim M, Kravchuk O, Savitsky M. A new powerful method for site-specific transgene stabilization based on chromosomal double-strand break repair. PLoS One 2011; 6:e26422. [PMID: 22022613 PMCID: PMC3195726 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0026422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2011] [Accepted: 09/26/2011] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Transgenic insects are a promising tool in sterile insect techniques and population replacement strategies. Such transgenic insects can be created using nonautonomous transposons, which cannot be transferred without a transposase source. In biocontrol procedures where large numbers of insects are released, there is increased risk of transgene remobilization caused by external transposase sources that can alter the characteristics of the transgenic organisms lead horizontal transgene transfer to other species. Here we describe a novel, effective method for transgene stabilization based on the introduction of directed double-strand breaks (DSB) into a genome-integrated sequence and their subsequent repair by the single-strand annealing (SSA) pathway. Due to the construct's organization, the repair pathway is predictable, such that all transposon and marker sequences can be deleted, while preserving integration of exogenous DNA in the genome. The exceptional conservation of DNA repair pathways makes this method suitable for a broad range of organisms.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Artem Tkachuk
- Group of Telomere Biology, Institute of Gene Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - Maria Kim
- Group of Telomere Biology, Institute of Gene Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - Oksana Kravchuk
- Group of Telomere Biology, Institute of Gene Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - Mikhail Savitsky
- Group of Telomere Biology, Institute of Gene Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
- Center for Medical Studies of Oslo University, Moscow, Russia
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|