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Insects as a New Complex Model in Hormonal Basis of Obesity. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms222011066. [PMID: 34681728 PMCID: PMC8540125 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222011066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2021] [Revised: 10/07/2021] [Accepted: 10/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Nowadays, one of the biggest problems in healthcare is an obesity epidemic. Consumption of cheap and low-quality energy-rich diets, low physical activity, and sedentary work favor an increase in the number of obesity cases within many populations/nations. This is a burden on society, public health, and the economy with many deleterious consequences. Thus, studies concerning this disorder are extremely needed, including searching for new, effective, and fitting models. Obesity may be related, among other factors, to disrupting adipocytes activity, disturbance of metabolic homeostasis, dysregulation of hormonal balance, cardiovascular problems, or disorders in nutrition which may lead to death. Because of the high complexity of obesity, it is not easy to find an ideal model for its studies which will be suitable for genetic and physiological analysis including specification of different compounds’ (hormones, neuropeptides) functions, as well as for signaling pathways analysis. In recent times, in search of new models for human diseases there has been more and more attention paid to insects, especially in neuro-endocrine regulation. It seems that this group of animals might also be a new model for human obesity. There are many arguments that insects are a good, multidirectional, and complex model for this disease. For example, insect models can have similar conservative signaling pathways (e.g., JAK-STAT signaling pathway), the presence of similar hormonal axis (e.g., brain–gut axis), or occurrence of structural and functional homologues between neuropeptides (e.g., neuropeptide F and human neuropeptide Y, insulin-like peptides, and human insulin) compared to humans. Here we give a hint to use insects as a model for obesity that can be used in multiple ways: as a source of genetic and peptidomic data about etiology and development correlated with obesity occurrence as well as a model for novel hormonal-based drug activity and their impact on mechanism of disease occurrence.
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Kh SD, Keshan B. Larval feeding status regulates the transcript levels of genes encoding PTTH and allatoregulatory peptides in silkworm Bombyx mori. INSECT SCIENCE 2021; 28:680-691. [PMID: 32401387 DOI: 10.1111/1744-7917.12802] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2019] [Revised: 04/17/2020] [Accepted: 05/06/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
In Bombyx mori, two dorsolateral neurosecretory cells (NSCs) in each of the two brain lobes have been identified as prothoracicotropic hormone (PTTH) producing cells. This neuropeptide in insects stimulates the prothoracic gland for the synthesis and release of ecdysone, responsible for the molting events. Allatotropin (AT) and allatostatin (AST) are allatoregulatory neuropeptides that regulate juvenile hormone biosynthesis. Here, by using RT-qPCR, we showed that in B. mori, nutritional stress modulates the mRNA expression of AT and AST-C (allatostain type C) in the central nervous system consisting of the brain lobes and all the associated ganglia. Using whole-mount in situ hybridization, we showed that the feeding status of Bombyx larvae also influences the expression of PTTH in the NSCs of the brain. Food deprivation significantly decreased the mRNA expression levels of PTTH in larvae at active or terminal growth period. Further, we showed that insulin modulates the expression level of PTTH. However, its action was dependent on the feeding status of the larvae. At feeding, the insulin decreased the PTTH expression level, while at food deprivation, the insulin increased the PTTH expression level. The data thus indicates that larval feeding status plays an important role in altering the mRNA expression levels of allatoregulatory peptide genes and PTTH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sanathoibi D Kh
- Department of Zoology, North-Eastern Hill University, Shillong, Meghalaya, India
| | - Bela Keshan
- Department of Zoology, North-Eastern Hill University, Shillong, Meghalaya, India
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Roesel CL, Rosengaus RB, Smith W, Vollmer SV. Transcriptomics reveals specific molecular mechanisms underlying transgenerational immunity in Manduca sexta. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:11251-11261. [PMID: 33144962 PMCID: PMC7593158 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6764] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2020] [Revised: 08/13/2020] [Accepted: 08/14/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The traditional view of innate immunity in insects is that every exposure to a pathogen triggers an identical and appropriate immune response and that prior exposures to pathogens do not confer any protective (i.e., adaptive) effect against subsequent exposure to the same pathogen. This view has been challenged by experiments demonstrating that encounters with sublethal doses of a pathogen can prime the insect's immune system and, thus, have protective effects against future lethal doses. Immune priming has been reported across several insect species, including the red flour beetle, the honeycomb moth, the bumblebee, and the European honeybee, among others. Immune priming can also be transgenerational where the parent's pathogenic history influences the immune response of its offspring. Phenotypic evidence of transgenerational immune priming (TGIP) exists in the tobacco moth Manduca sexta where first-instar progeny of mothers injected with the bacterium Serratia marcescens exhibited a significant increase of in vivo bacterial clearance. To identify the gene expression changes underlying TGIP in M. sexta, we performed transcriptome-wide, transgenerational differential gene expression analysis on mothers and their offspring after mothers were exposed to S. marcescens. We are the first to perform transcriptome-wide analysis of the gene expression changes associated with TGIP in this ecologically relevant model organism. We show that maternal exposure to both heat-killed and live S. marcescens has strong and significant transgenerational impacts on gene expression patterns in their offspring, including upregulation of peptidoglycan recognition protein, toll-like receptor 9, and the antimicrobial peptide cecropin.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Wendy Smith
- Marine Science CenterNortheastern UniversityNahantMAUSA
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Jiang T, Ma L, Liu XY, Xiao HJ, Zhang WN. Effects of starvation on respiratory metabolism and energy metabolism in the cotton bollworm Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2019; 119:103951. [PMID: 31563619 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2019.103951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2019] [Revised: 09/15/2019] [Accepted: 09/25/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Intermittent food shortages are commonly encountered in the wild. To cope with the threat of starvation, insects initiate a suite of behavioral activities and physiological countermeasures. The cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera, is a major agricultural pest worldwide, but how H. armigera modulates its metabolism under starvation remains ambiguous. In the present study, the respiratory rates (V̇O2; ml g-1 h-1) from the third-larval instar to the pupal stage were first determined. Our results highlighted a transient rise during the larval-larval molt and larval-pupal transition, followed by a sharp decline in the pupal stage and, finally, an upward trend before eclosion. When subjected to food deprivation, the starved larvae experienced a significant decline in the rates of O2 consumed and CO2 produced, as well as in respiratory quotient (RQ) values, indicative of severe metabolic depression during starvation and a shift of metabolic substrates with prolonged starvation. For metabolic substrate analysis, an apparent decline in triglyceride and glycogen contents was observed in the starved larvae, and the hemolymph trehalose content was significantly reduced throughout starvation. In addition, comparative transcriptome analysis showed that 48 h of larval starvation caused substantial transcriptional regulations in several energetically costly processes, wherein the marked up-regulations were detected in the pathways of glycolysis and fatty acid metabolism. Overall, our work makes a comprehensive study on the respiratory rate and energy metabolism in the starved H. armigera larvae, and provides a deep insight into the physiological adaptive strategies to alleviate nutritional stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ting Jiang
- Institute of Entomology, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China
| | - Long Ma
- College of Life Sciences, Jiangxi Science & Technology Normal University, Nanchang 330013, China
| | - Xiang-Ya Liu
- Institute of Entomology, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China
| | - Hai-Jun Xiao
- Institute of Entomology, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China.
| | - Wan-Na Zhang
- Institute of Entomology, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China.
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Lafuente E, Beldade P. Genomics of Developmental Plasticity in Animals. Front Genet 2019; 10:720. [PMID: 31481970 PMCID: PMC6709652 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2019.00720] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2019] [Accepted: 07/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Developmental plasticity refers to the property by which the same genotype produces distinct phenotypes depending on the environmental conditions under which development takes place. By allowing organisms to produce phenotypes adjusted to the conditions that adults will experience, developmental plasticity can provide the means to cope with environmental heterogeneity. Developmental plasticity can be adaptive and its evolution can be shaped by natural selection. It has also been suggested that developmental plasticity can facilitate adaptation and promote diversification. Here, we summarize current knowledge on the evolution of plasticity and on the impact of plasticity on adaptive evolution, and we identify recent advances and important open questions about the genomics of developmental plasticity in animals. We give special attention to studies using transcriptomics to identify genes whose expression changes across developmental environments and studies using genetic mapping to identify loci that contribute to variation in plasticity and can fuel its evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Patrícia Beldade
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Oeiras, Portugal
- CNRS-UMR5174, Université Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Changes, Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal
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Zhang DW, Xiao ZJ, Zeng BP, Li K, Tang YL. Insect Behavior and Physiological Adaptation Mechanisms Under Starvation Stress. Front Physiol 2019; 10:163. [PMID: 30890949 PMCID: PMC6411660 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2019.00163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2018] [Accepted: 02/11/2019] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Intermittent food shortages are commonly encountered in the wild. During winter or starvation stress, mammals often choose to hibernate while insects-in the form of eggs, mature larvae, pupae, or adults opt to enter diapause. In response to food shortages, insects may try to find sufficient food to maintain normal growth and metabolism through distribution of populations or even migration. In the face of hunger or starvation, insect responses can include changes in behavior and/or maintenance of a low metabolic rate through physiological adaptations or regulation. For instance, in order to maintain homeostasis of the blood sugar, trehalose under starvation stress, other sugars can be transformed to sustain basic energy metabolism. Furthermore, as the severity of starvation increases, lipids (especially triglycerides) are broken down to improve hunger resistance. Starvation stress simultaneously initiates a series of neural signals and hormone regulation processes in insects. These processes involve neurons or neuropeptides, immunity-related genes, levels of autophagy, heat shock proteins and juvenile hormone levels which maintain lower levels of physiological metabolic activity. This work focuses on hunger stress in insects and reviews its effects on behavior, energy reserve utilization, and physiological regulation. In summary, we highlight the diversity in adaptive strategies of insects to hunger stress and provides potential ideas to improve hunger resistance and cold storage development of natural enemy insects. This gist of literature on insects also broadens our understanding of the factors that dictate phenotypic plasticity in adjusting development and life histories around nutritionally optimal environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dao-Wei Zhang
- School of Biological and Agricultural Science and Technology, Zunyi Normal University, Zunyi, China
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Lismont E, Vleugels R, Marchal E, Badisco L, Van Wielendaele P, Lenaerts C, Zels S, Tobe SS, Vanden Broeck J, Verlinden H. Molecular cloning and characterization of the allatotropin precursor and receptor in the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria. Front Neurosci 2015; 9:84. [PMID: 25814925 PMCID: PMC4357254 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2015.00084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2014] [Accepted: 02/25/2015] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Allatotropins (ATs) are pleiotropic neuropeptides initially isolated from the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta. In 2008, the first receptor for AT-like peptides (ATR) was characterized in Bombyx mori. Since then, ATRs have also been characterized in M. sexta, Tribolium castaneum, Aedes aegypti and Bombus terrestris. These receptors show sequence similarity to vertebrate orexin (ORX) receptors. When generating an EST-database of the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) central nervous system, we found cDNA sequences encoding the Schgr-AT precursor and a fragment of its putative receptor. This receptor cDNA has now been completed and functionally expressed in mammalian cell lines. Activation of this receptor, designated as Schgr-ATR, by Schgr-AT caused an increase in intracellular calcium ions, as well as cyclic AMP (cAMP), with an EC50 value in the nanomolar range. In addition, the transcript distribution of both the Schgr-AT precursor and Schgr-ATR was investigated by means of quantitative real-time PCR. Moreover, we found more evidence for the myotropic and allatostimulatory actions of Schgr-AT in the desert locust. These data are discussed and situated in a broader context by comparison with literature data on AT and ATR in insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Els Lismont
- Molecular Developmental Physiology and Signal Transduction, KU Leuven Leuven, Belgium
| | - Rut Vleugels
- Molecular Developmental Physiology and Signal Transduction, KU Leuven Leuven, Belgium
| | - Elisabeth Marchal
- Molecular Developmental Physiology and Signal Transduction, KU Leuven Leuven, Belgium ; Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Liesbeth Badisco
- Molecular Developmental Physiology and Signal Transduction, KU Leuven Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Cynthia Lenaerts
- Molecular Developmental Physiology and Signal Transduction, KU Leuven Leuven, Belgium
| | - Sven Zels
- Molecular Developmental Physiology and Signal Transduction, KU Leuven Leuven, Belgium
| | - Stephen S Tobe
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jozef Vanden Broeck
- Molecular Developmental Physiology and Signal Transduction, KU Leuven Leuven, Belgium
| | - Heleen Verlinden
- Molecular Developmental Physiology and Signal Transduction, KU Leuven Leuven, Belgium
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Koyama T, Mendes CC, Mirth CK. Mechanisms regulating nutrition-dependent developmental plasticity through organ-specific effects in insects. Front Physiol 2013; 4:263. [PMID: 24133450 PMCID: PMC3783933 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2013.00263] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2013] [Accepted: 09/06/2013] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Nutrition, via the insulin/insulin-like growth factor (IIS)/Target of Rapamycin (TOR) signaling pathway, can provide a strong molding force for determining animal size and shape. For instance, nutrition induces a disproportionate increase in the size of male horns in dung and rhinoceros beetles, or mandibles in staghorn or horned flour beetles, relative to body size. In these species, well-fed male larvae produce adults with greatly enlarged horns or mandibles, whereas males that are starved or poorly fed as larvae bear much more modest appendages. Changes in IIS/TOR signaling plays a key role in appendage development by regulating growth in the horn and mandible primordia. In contrast, changes in the IIS/TOR pathway produce minimal effects on the size of other adult structures, such as the male genitalia in fruit flies and dung beetles. The horn, mandible and genitalia illustrate that although all tissues are exposed to the same hormonal environment within the larval body, the extent to which insulin can induce growth is organ specific. In addition, the IIS/TOR pathway affects body size and shape by controlling production of metamorphic hormones important for regulating developmental timing, like the steroid molting hormone ecdysone and sesquiterpenoid hormone juvenile hormone. In this review, we discuss recent results from Drosophila and other insects that highlight mechanisms allowing tissues to differ in their sensitivity to IIS/TOR and the potential consequences of these differences on body size and shape.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takashi Koyama
- Development, Evolution and the Environment Laboratory, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência Oeiras, Portugal
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González-Tokman D, González-Santoyo I, Munguía-Steyer R, Córdoba-Aguilar A. Effect of juvenile hormone on senescence in males with terminal investment. J Evol Biol 2013; 26:2458-66. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2013] [Revised: 07/29/2013] [Accepted: 08/06/2013] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- D. González-Tokman
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva; Instituto de Ecología; Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; México D. F. México
| | - I. González-Santoyo
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva; Instituto de Ecología; Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; México D. F. México
| | - R. Munguía-Steyer
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva; Instituto de Ecología; Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; México D. F. México
| | - A. Córdoba-Aguilar
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva; Instituto de Ecología; Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; México D. F. México
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Hiruma K, Kaneko Y. Hormonal Regulation of Insect Metamorphosis with Special Reference to Juvenile Hormone Biosynthesis. Curr Top Dev Biol 2013; 103:73-100. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-385979-2.00003-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
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Nouzova M, Brockhoff A, Mayoral JG, Goodwin M, Meyerhof W, Noriega FG. Functional characterization of an allatotropin receptor expressed in the corpora allata of mosquitoes. Peptides 2012; 34:201-8. [PMID: 21839791 PMCID: PMC3233642 DOI: 10.1016/j.peptides.2011.07.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2011] [Revised: 07/13/2011] [Accepted: 07/14/2011] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Allatotropin is an insect neuropeptide with pleiotropic actions on a variety of different tissues. In the present work we describe the identification, cloning and functional and molecular characterization of an Aedes aegypti allatotropin receptor (AeATr) and provide a detailed quantitative study of the expression of the AeATr gene in the adult mosquito. Analysis of the tissue distribution of AeATr mRNA in adult female revealed high transcript levels in the nervous system (brain, abdominal, thoracic and ventral ganglia), corpora allata-corpora cardiaca complex and ovary. The receptor is also expressed in heart, hindgut and male testis and accessory glands. Separation of the corpora allata (CA) and corpora cardiaca followed by analysis of gene expression in the isolated glands revealed expression of the AeATr primarily in the CA. In the female CA, the AeATr mRNA levels were low in the early pupae, started increasing 6h before adult eclosion and reached a maximum 24h after female emergence. Blood feeding resulted in a decrease in transcript levels. The pattern of changes of AeATr mRNA resembles the changes in JH biosynthesis. Fluorometric Imaging Plate Reader recordings of calcium transients in HEK293 cells expressing the AeATr showed a selective response to A. aegypti allatotropin stimulation in the low nanomolar concentration range. Our studies suggest that the AeATr play a role in the regulation of JH synthesis in mosquitoes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Anne Brockhoff
- Department of Molecular Genetics, German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke, Germany
| | | | | | - Wolfgang Meyerhof
- Department of Molecular Genetics, German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke, Germany
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Nagata S, Matsumoto S, Mizoguchi A, Nagasawa H. Identification of cDNAs encoding allatotropin and allatotropin-like peptides from the silkworm, Bombyx mori. Peptides 2012; 34:98-105. [PMID: 22265806 DOI: 10.1016/j.peptides.2012.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2011] [Revised: 01/02/2012] [Accepted: 01/04/2012] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The cDNAs encoding allatotropin (AT) and allatotropin-like peptides (ATLPs) were isolated from the silkworm, Bombyx mori. Similar to those of the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, four peptides (AT, ATLP1, ATLP2, and ATLP3) are present in three different variants generated by alternative splicing. RT-PCR analyses showed that these splice variants are expressed in the central nervous system with differing expression patterns in each ganglion. Immunohistochemistry using an anti-AT antibody confirmed that AT-expressing cells were located in these central nervous ganglia as well as in two large anterior cells of the frontal ganglia. Injection of synthetic AT and ATLP-1 into B. mori larvae increased the latency to feed, indicating that AT and ATLP might function in the regulation of feeding behavior in B. mori.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shinji Nagata
- Department of Applied Biological Chemistry, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
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Gruntenko NE, Bogomolova EV, Adonyeva NV, Karpova EK, Menshanov PN, Alekseev AA, Romanova IV, Li S, Rauschenbach IY. Decrease in juvenile hormone level as a result of genetic ablation of the corpus allatum cells affects the synthesis and metabolism of stress related hormones in Drosophila. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2012; 58:49-55. [PMID: 22019561 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2011.09.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2011] [Revised: 09/27/2011] [Accepted: 09/28/2011] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Previous studies have shown that juvenile hormone (JH) regulates dopamine (DA) and octopamine (OA) content in Drosophila, and we have shown the influence of an increase in JH level on DA and OA metabolism in young females of Drosophila virilis and Drosophila melanogaster. Here we investigate the effects of genetic ablation of a subset of cells in the Corpusallatum (CA, endocrine gland synthesizing JH) on the DA levels and activities of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), DA-dependent arylalkylamine N-acetyltransferase (DAT) and tyrosine decarboxylase (TDC) in young D. melanogaster females under normal conditions and upon heat stress (38°С). We show that ablation of СА cells causes: (1) a decrease in ALP, TH and DAT activities, (2) an increase in DA level and (3) an increase in TDC activity in young females. The CA ablation was also found to modulate ALP, TH and TDC responses to heat stress. Mechanisms of regulation of DA and OA levels by JH in Drosophila females are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- N E Gruntenko
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics, Siberian Division of Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk 630090, Russia.
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Walsh AL, Smith WA. Nutritional sensitivity of fifth instar prothoracic glands in the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2011; 57:809-818. [PMID: 21420972 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2011.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2010] [Revised: 03/13/2011] [Accepted: 03/14/2011] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Insulin-regulated growth of the prothoracic glands appears to play a critical role in timing the last larval molt, and hence metamorphosis. The present study examined insulin signaling in relation to the growth and secretory activity of prothoracic glands in the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta. As larvae feed during the first half of the final larval stage, the prothoracic glands grow and ecdysone secretory capacity increases. During this period of growth, we verified the presence of insulin receptor transcript in the prothoracic glands and demonstrated that the glands were responsive to insulin, as evidenced by the in vitro phosphorylation of signaling proteins in the insulin pathway such as Akt/protein kinase B and FOXO. It was predicted that starvation would reduce ecdysone secretion with concomitant changes in insulin signaling. To test this prediction, larvae were starved and changes were quantified in two nutritionally sensitive transcripts, insulin receptor and the translation inhibitor 4EBP. In glands from starved larvae, growth and ecdysone secretory capacity were reduced, and insulin receptor and 4EBP transcripts were increased. The latter changes would be expected to accompany starvation in conjunction with enhanced insulin sensitivity and reduced protein synthesis. Increased transcription of insulin receptor and 4EBP strongly suggest that nutritional deprivation reduces the secretion of endogenous insulin-like hormones. When injected with insulin, 4EBP levels in the prothoracic glands of starved larvae decreased. Thus, insulin appeared to correct starvation-induced deficits in glandular protein synthesis. However, insulin injection did not enhance ecdysone secretion. Thus, although the prothoracic glands are insulin-responsive and insulin-like hormones may promote glandular growth as larvae feed, the effects of nutritional depletion on steroidogenesis in Manduca cannot be explained solely by reduced insulin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy L Walsh
- Department of Biology, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 134 Mugar Building, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
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Sheng Z, Ma L, Cao MX, Jiang RJ, Li S. Juvenile hormone acid methyl transferase is a key regulatory enzyme for juvenile hormone synthesis in the Eri silkworm, Samia cynthica ricini. ARCHIVES OF INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY 2008; 69:143-154. [PMID: 18839418 DOI: 10.1002/arch.20268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
During the period of adult emergence in the Eri silkworm, Samia cynthia ricini, the corpora allata (CA) are apparently reactivated in females, but not males. This creates a significant sexual dimorphism in juvenile hormone (JH) synthesis by CA. To determine the underlying molecular mechanisms in this process, we cloned cDNAs of two enzymes involved in the JH synthesis pathway: 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA reductase (HMGR) and juvenile hormone acid methyl transferase (JHAMT). Both Samcri-HMGR and -JHAMT mRNAs were detected in CA almost exclusively. However, their expression patterns were different from each other. During the period of adult emergence, Samcri-HMGR was expressed in CA at a constantly high level suggesting it plays little role for the regulation of JH synthesis. In contrast, the patterns of both Samcri-JHAMT mRNA level and enzyme activity were closely correlated with the patterns of JH synthesis, CA reactivation, and sexual dimorphism of JH synthesis. In addition, JHAMT mRNA levels were paralleled JH synthesis in the fifth-instar larvae of S. cynthia ricini and the pharate adults of the silkworm Bombyx mori. We infer from these results that JHAMT is a key regulatory enzyme for JH synthesis in the Eri silkworm.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhentao Sheng
- Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
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Sheng Z, Ma L, Cao MX, Li S, Jiang RJ. Biochemical and molecular characterization of allatotropin and allatostatin from the Eri silkworm, Samia cynthia ricini. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2007; 37:90-6. [PMID: 17175449 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2006.09.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2006] [Revised: 08/29/2006] [Accepted: 09/01/2006] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
In a previous study, allatotropic and allatostatic activities were observed in brain extract from the Eri silkworm, Samia cynthia ricini (Samcri) [Li, S., Jiang, R.-J., Cao, M.-X., 2002b. Allatotropic and allatostatic activities in brain extracts of the Eri silkworm, S. cynthia ricini, and the effects of Manduca sexta allatotropin and M. sexta allatostatin on juvenile hormone in vitro. Physiol. Entomol. 27, 322-329]. In the present study, the HPLC purified Samcri-allatotropin (AT) and -allatostatin (AST) factors were shown to have the same retention time as those of M. sexta (Manse)-AT and -AST, respectively. Moreover, the amino acid sequences of mature Samcri-AT and -AST deduced from their encoding cDNAs are identical to the Manse-AT and -AST amino acid sequences. Both Samcri-AT and -AST genes were expressed in brain, nerve cord, and midgut, with Samcri-AT also detected in gonads and epidermis, suggesting their pleiotropic physiological functions. The expression levels of Samcri-AT and -AST genes correlated well with the allatoregulatory activities during the period of adult emergence indicating the two peptides tightly control JH synthesis, in a contradictive and cooperative manner. Our biochemical and molecular data of Samcri-AT and -AST and other studies demonstrate that these two peptides regulate JH synthesis by corpora allata in Lepidoptera and have pleiotropic physiological effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhentao Sheng
- Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 20032, China
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