Isolation of material displaying insulin-like immunological biological activity from the brain of the blowfly Calliphora vomitoria

Functional characterisation of Fe (II) and 2OG-dependent dioxygenase TcALKBH4 in the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum

Alpha-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase ALKB homologue 4 (ALKBH4) is a member of the Fe (II) and 2-oxoglutarate-dependent ALKB homologue family that plays important roles in epigenetic regulation by alkyl lesions removal in mammals. However, the roles of ALKBH4 in insects are not clear. Here, TcALKBH4 was cloned and functionally characterised in Tribolium castaneum. Temporal expression revealed that TcALKBH4 was highly expressed in early embryos and early pupae. Spatial expression showed that TcALKBH4 was highly expressed in the adult testis, and followed by the ovary. RNA interference targeting TcALKBH4 at different developmental stages in T. castaneum led to apparent phenotypes including the failure of development in larvae, the reduction of food intake and the deficiency of fertility in adult. However, further dot blot analyses showed that TcALKBH4 RNAi does not seem to influence 6 mA levels in vivo. qRT-PCR was used to further explore the underlying molecular mechanisms; the result showed that TcALKBH4 mediates the development of larvae possibly through 20E signalling pathway, and the fertility of female and male adult might be regulated by the expression of vitellogenesis and JH signalling pathway, respectively. Altogether, these findings will provide new insights into the potential function of ALKBH4 in insects.

The water extract of Potentilla discolor Bunge (PDW) ameliorates high-sugar diet-induced type II diabetes model in Drosophila melanogaster via JAK/STAT signaling

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Potentilla discolor Bunge (PD) is a member of the Rosaceae family. It has been traditionally used in folk medicine for the treatment of diabetes. Additionally, people in folk also eat fresh and tender PD stems as vegetables or brew them as tea.

AIM OF THE STUDY

The aim of this study was to explore the antidiabetic effects and underlying mechanisms of the water extract of Potentilla discolor (PDW) in a fruit fly model of high-sugar diet-induced type 2 diabetes.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The antidiabetic efficacy of PDW was evaluated in a fruit fly model of diabetes induced by a high-sugar diet (HSD). Various physiological parameters were tested to evaluate the anti-diabetic effect of PDW. Gene expression levels related to insulin signaling pathways, glucose metabolism, lipid metabolism, and JAK/STAT signaling pathways were primarily analyzed using RT-qPCR to investigate the therapeutic mechanisms.

RESULTS

In this study, we found that the water extract of Potentilla discolor (PDW) can ameliorate type II diabetes phenotypes induced by the HSD in fruit flies. These phenotypes include growth rate, body size, hyperglycemia, glycogen metabolism, fat storage, and intestinal microflora homeostasis. PDW also improved the body size of s6k and rheb knockdown flies, suggesting its potential to activate the downstream insulin pathway and alleviate insulin resistance. Furthermore, we demonstrated that PDW reduced the expression of two target genes of the JAK/STAT signaling pathway, namely the insulin antagonist Impl2 and insulin receptor inhibitor Socs36E, which act as regulators inhibiting the activation of the insulin signaling pathway.

CONCLUSIONS

This study provides evidence for the anti-diabetic activity of PDW and suggests that its underlying mechanism may involve the improvement of insulin resistance by inhibiting the JAK/STAT signaling pathway.

Drosophila melanogaster diabetes models and its usage in the research of anti-diabetes management with traditional Chinese medicines

The prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM) is increasing rapidly worldwide, but the underlying molecular mechanisms of disease development have not been elucidated, and the current popular anti-diabetic approaches still have non-negligible limitations. In the last decades, several different DM models were established on the classic model animal, the fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster), which provided a convenient way to study the mechanisms underlying diabetes and to discover and evaluate new anti-diabetic compounds. In this article, we introduce the Drosophila Diabetes model from three aspects, including signal pathways, established methods, and pharmacodynamic evaluations. As a highlight, the progress in the treatments and experimental studies of diabetes with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) based on the Drosophila Diabetes model is reviewed. We believe that the values of TCMs are underrated in DM management, and the Drosophila Diabetes models can provide a much more efficient tool to explore its values of it.

Streptozotocin induces brain glucose metabolic changes and alters glucose transporter expression in the Lobster cockroach; Nauphoeta cinerea (Blattodea: Blaberidae)

The development of new models to study diabetes in invertebrates is important to ensure adherence to the 3R's principle and to expedite knowledge of the complex molecular events underlying glucose toxicity. Streptozotocin (STZ)-an alkylating and highly toxic agent that has tropism to mammalian beta cells-is used as a model of type 1 diabetes in rodents, but little is known about STZ effects in insects. Here, the cockroach; Nauphoeta cinerea was used to determine the acute toxicity of 74 and 740 nmol of STZ injection per cockroach. STZ increased the glucose content, mRNA expression of glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1) and markers of oxidative stress in the head. Fat body glycogen, insect survival, acetylcholinesterase activity, triglyceride content and viable cells in head homogenate were reduced, which may indicate a disruption in glucose utilization by the head and fat body of insects after injection of 74 and 740 nmol STZ per nymph. The glutathione S-transferase (GST) activity and reduced glutathione levels (GSH) were increased, possibly via activation of nuclear factor erythroid 2 related factor as a compensatory response against the increase in reactive oxygen species. Our data present the potential for metabolic disruption in N. cinerea by glucose analogues and opens paths for the study of brain energy metabolism in insects. We further phylogenetically demonstrated conservation between N. cinerea glucose transporter 1 and the GLUT of other insects in the Neoptera infra-class.

Isolation of an insulin-like peptide from the Asian malaria mosquito, Anopheles stephensi, that acts as a steroidogenic gonadotropin across diverse mosquito taxa

Many insulin-like peptides (ILPs) have been identified in insects, yet only a few were isolated in their native form for structural and functional studies. Antiserum produced to ILP3 in Aedes aegypti was used in a radioimmunoassay to monitor the purification of an ILP from heads of adult An. stephensi and recognized the ILP in other immunoassays. The structure of the purified peptide matched that predicted for the ILP3 in this species. The native form stimulated ecdysteroid production by ovaries isolated from non-blood fed females. Synthetic forms of An. stephensi ILP3 and ILP4 similarly activated this process in a dose responsive manner. This function was first established for ILP3 and ILP4 homologs in Aedes aegypti, thus suggesting their structural and functional conservation in mosquitoes. We tested the extent of conservation by treating ovaries of An. gambiae, Ae. aegypti, and Culex quinquefasciatus with the An. stephensi ILPs, and both the native and synthetic ILP3 were stimulatory, as was the ILP4. Taken together, these results offer the first evidence for ILP functional conservation across the Anophelinae and Culicinae subfamilies.

Drosophila as a Model for Diabetes and Diseases of Insulin Resistance

Despite the importance of insulin signaling pathways in human disease, initial concerns that insect physiology and sugar metabolism differ enough from humans that flies would not model human disease hampered research in this area. However, during the past 10-15 years, evidence has accumulated that flies can indeed model various aspects of diabetes and related human disorders. This cluster of diseases impact insulin and insulin signaling pathways, fields which have been discussed in many excellent review articles in recent years. In this chapter, we restrict our focus to specific examples of diabetes-related disease models in Drosophila, discussing the advantages and limitations of these models in light of physiological similarities and differences between insects and mammals. We discuss features of metabolism and sugar regulation that are shared between flies and mammals, and specific Drosophila models for Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, Metabolic syndrome, and related abnormalities including insulin resistance and heart disease. We conclude that fly models for diabetes and related disorders enhance our ability to identify genes and discern functional interactions that can be exploited for disease intervention.

Insulin/IGF signaling and its regulation in Drosophila

Taking advantage of Drosophila as a genetically tractable experimental animal much progress has been made in our understanding of how the insulin/IGF signaling (IIS) pathway regulates development, growth, metabolism, stress responses and lifespan. The role of IIS in regulation of neuronal activity and behavior has also become apparent from experiments in Drosophila. This review briefly summarizes these functional roles of IIS, and also how the insulin producing cells (IPCs) are regulated in the fly. Furthermore, we discuss functional aspects of the spatio-temporal production of eight different insulin-like peptides (DILP1-8) that are thought to act on one known receptor (dInR) in Drosophila.

Insulin-like and IGF-like peptides in the silkmoth Bombyx mori: discovery, structure, secretion, and function

A quarter of a century has passed since bombyxin, the first insulin-like peptide identified in insects, was discovered in the silkmoth Bombyx mori. During these years, bombyxin has been studied for its structure, genes, distribution, hemolymph titers, secretion control, as well as physiological functions, thereby stimulating a wide range of studies on insulin-like peptides in other insects. Moreover, recent studies have identified a new class of insulin family peptides, IGF-like peptides, in B. mori and Drosophila melanogaster, broadening the base of the research area of the insulin-related peptides in insects. In this review, we describe the achievements of the studies on insulin-like and IGF-like peptides mainly in B. mori with short histories of their discovery. Our emphasis is that bombyxins, secreted by the brain neurosecretory cells, regulate nutrient-dependent growth and metabolism, whereas the IGF-like peptides, secreted by the fat body and other peripheral tissues, regulate stage-dependent growth of tissues.

Insulin-producing cells and their regulation in physiology and behavior ofDrosophila1This review is part of a virtual symposium on recent advances in understanding a variety of complex regulatory processes in insect physiology and endocrinology, including development, metabolism, cold hardiness, food intake and digestion, and diuresis, through the use of omics technologies in the postgenomic era

Insulin-like peptide signaling regulates development, growth, reproduction, metabolism, stress resistance, and life span in a wide spectrum of animals. Not only the peptides, but also their tyrosine kinase receptors and the downstream signaling pathways are conserved over evolution. This review summarizes roles of insulin-like peptides (DILPs) in physiology and behavior of Drosophila melanogaster Meigen, 1830. Seven DILPs (DILP1–7) and one receptor (dInR) have been identified in Drosophila. These DILPs display cell and stage specific expression patterns. In the adult, DILP2, 3, and 5 are expressed in insulin-producing cells (IPCs) among the median neurosecretory cells of the brain, DILP7 in 20 neurons of the abdominal ganglion, and DILP6 in the fat body. The DILPs of the IPCs regulate starvation resistance, responses to oxidative and temperature stress, and carbohydrate and lipid metabolism. Furthermore, the IPCs seem to regulate feeding, locomotor activity, sleep and ethanol sensitivity, but the mechanisms are not elucidated. Insulin also alters the sensitivity in the olfactory system that affects food search behavior, and regulates peptidergic neurons that control aspects of feeding behavior. Finally, the control of insulin production and release by humoral and neuronal factors is discussed. This includes a fat body derived factor and the neurotransmitters GABA, serotonin, octopamine, and two neuropeptides.

Signaling and function of insulin-like peptides in insects

Insulin-like peptides (ILPs) exist in insects and are encoded by multigene families that are expressed in the brain and other tissues. Upon secretion, these peptides likely serve as hormones, neurotransmitters, and growth factors, but to date, few direct functions have been demonstrated. In Drosophila melanogaster, molecular genetic studies have revealed elements of a conserved insulin signaling pathway, and as in other animal models, it appears to play a key role in metabolism, growth, reproduction, and aging. This review offers (a) an integrated summary of the efforts to characterize the distribution of ILPs in insects and to define this pathway and its functions in Drosophila and (b) a few considerations for future studies of ILP endocrinology in insects.

A brain peptide stimulates release of amylase from the midgut tissue of larvae of Opisina arenosella Walk. (Lepidoptera: Cryptophasidae)

Brain extracts from 3 to 4 day old final (eighth) instar larvae of Opisina arenosella (Lepidoptera) stimulate amylase release from midgut preparations maintained in vitro. This effect of the brain extract was both time and dose dependent. The brain factor stimulating enzyme release may be a peptide as it is heat stable and susceptible to treatment with proteolytic enzymes. For purification of the brain factor, a head extract prepared in 2% NaCl was first precipitated in 80% aqueous acetone and then fractionated by DEAE cellulose ion exchange chromatography. The fraction OCF(2), from ion exchange chromatography was further purified on a Sephadex G25 column. The fraction designated as OCF(2.3) obtained by gel filtration showed maximum activity and it was selected for HPLC analysis. HPLC elution profiles of OCF(2.3) showed two major peaks separated by a time interval of 0.107 min. The two overlapping peaks of OCF(2.3) may represent either different forms of a peptide or different peptides of a family. The molecular weight OCF(2.3) was estimated to be 1070 Da.

Isolation and biological characterization of a 6-kDa protein from hepatopancreas of lobster Panulirus argus with insulin-like effects

A protein with insulin-like effects was isolated from the hepatopancreas of the lobster Panulirus argus following a classic method for mammalian insulin purification from the pancreas. After acid-alcoholic extraction and ethanol-ether precipitation followed by molecular filtration chromatography, a protein with an apparent molecular weight of 6 kDa was isolated. This protein is characterized by its ability to interact with anti-insulin antibodies and by mimicking insulin actions as the stimulation of glucose oxidation to CO(2) and lipogenesis in isolated rat adipocytes. In addition, this insulin immunoreactive protein (IIP) was able to stimulate the autophosphorylation of the insulin receptor present in rat adipocyte plasma membranes, in a dose-dependent manner. The immunological and biochemical results obtained are consistent with the hypothesis that protein(s) with insulin-like effects occur in the digestive gland of the lobster P. argus and may be of significance to control metabolic and growth related processes in crustaceans.

Neuropeptides in the nervous system of Drosophila and other insects: multiple roles as neuromodulators and neurohormones

Neuropeptides in insects act as neuromodulators in the central and peripheral nervous system and as regulatory hormones released into the circulation. The functional roles of insect neuropeptides encompass regulation of homeostasis, organization of behaviors, initiation and coordination of developmental processes and modulation of neuronal and muscular activity. With the completion of the sequencing of the Drosophila genome we have obtained a fairly good estimate of the total number of genes encoding neuropeptide precursors and thus the total number of neuropeptides in an insect. At present there are 23 identified genes that encode predicted neuropeptides and an additional seven encoding insulin-like peptides in Drosophila. Since the number of G-protein-coupled neuropeptide receptors in Drosophila is estimated to be around 40, the total number of neuropeptide genes in this insect will probably not exceed three dozen. The neuropeptides can be grouped into families, and it is suggested here that related peptides encoded on a Drosophila gene constitute a family and that peptides from related genes (orthologs) in other species belong to the same family. Some peptides are encoded as multiple related isoforms on a precursor and it is possible that many of these isoforms are functionally redundant. The distribution and possible functions of members of the 23 neuropeptide families and the insulin-like peptides are discussed. It is clear that each of the distinct neuropeptides are present in specific small sets of neurons and/or neurosecretory cells and in some cases in cells of the intestine or certain peripheral sites. The distribution patterns vary extensively between types of neuropeptides. Another feature emerging for many insect neuropeptides is that they appear to be multifunctional. One and the same peptide may act both in the CNS and as a circulating hormone and play different functional roles at different central and peripheral targets. A neuropeptide can, for instance, act as a coreleased signal that modulates the action of a classical transmitter and the peptide action depends on the cotransmitter and the specific circuit where it is released. Some peptides, however, may work as molecular switches and trigger specific global responses at a given time. Drosophila, in spite of its small size, is now emerging as a very favorable organism for the studies of neuropeptide function due to the arsenal of molecular genetics methods available.

Genetic analysis of insulin signaling in Drosophila

Studies in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster and the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans have revealed that components of the insulin signaling pathway have been highly conserved during evolution. Genetic analysis in Drosophila suggests that structural conservation also extends to the functional level. Flies carrying mutations that reduce insulin signaling have a growth deficiency phenotype similar to that seen in mice with disruptions of genes encoding insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) or the IGF-I receptor. Recent studies in flies have demonstrated a role for the insulin signaling pathway in the regulation of metabolism, reproduction and lifespan via modulation of central neuroendocrine pathways. Similarly, mice with loss of brain insulin receptors or insulin receptor substrate 2 deficiency exhibit neuroendocrine defects and female infertility. These parallels suggest that the insulin system has multiple conserved roles, acting directly to modulate growth and indirectly, via the neuroendocrine system, to modulate peripheral physiology in response to changes in nutrient availability.

Characterization of an insulin receptor-related receptor in Biomphalaria glabrata embryonic cells

Tyrosine kinase receptors play a key role in the communication of cells with their environment. Growth hormone receptors, such as insulin receptors, are involved in the regulation of cell growth, differentiation and metabolism in multicellular organisms. Insulin-related peptides and members of the insulin receptor subfamily have been described in a wide variety of invertebrates, including freshwater molluscs. In this paper, we describe the metabolic effect of insulin on a mollusc cell line (Bge) derived from embryos of the snail Biomphalaria glabrata. Using a PCR strategy, we have cloned from Bge cells a cDNA encoding a protein (BgIR) homologous to, and exhibiting all of the typical features of insulin receptors. Northern blot analysis confirmed the expression of BgIR in B. glabrata snails and suggested its wide distribution in the snail body. Bge cells have been shown to provide the environmental conditions necessary for the in vitro development of the sporocysts of Schistosoma mansoni, a trematode parasite that uses B. glabrata as an intermediate host. The possible implication of BgIR in the activating and proliferating processes observed in Bge cells during their coculture with S. mansoni larvae is discussed.

Neurobiology of the gustatory systems of Drosophila and some terrestrial insects

Insects have been favorites for the study of taste perception in the last few decades. They have been used for anatomical, behavioral, developmental, genetic, and physiological studies related to gustation and feeding response. Several genes known to affect the formation of gustatory sensilla or alter the feeding behavior of insects such as Drosophila are known. Studies related to signal transduction, coding of gustatory information, and the nature and constitution of genes involved in taste perception have also been taken up with insects in recent years. The understanding of basic mechanisms of taste perception in insects is likely to lead to better management of useful as well as harmful insects.

Bombyxin, an insulin-related peptide of insects, reduces the major storage carbohydrates in the silkworm Bombyx mori

The effects of an insect insulin-related peptide, bombyxin, on carbohydrate metabolism were investigated in the silkworm Bombyx mori. Bombyxin lowered the concentration of the major hemolymph sugar, trehalose, in a dose-dependent manner when injected into neck-ligated larvae. Bombyxin also caused elevated trehalase activity in the midgut and muscle, suggesting that bombyxin induces hypotrehalosemia by promoting the hydrolysis of hemolymph trehalose to glucose and thereby facilitating its transport into tissues. In addition, bombyxin reduced the glycogen content in the fat body and concurrently raised the percentage of active glycogen phosphorylase in this tissue. Because hemolymph trehalose is also a major storage form of carbohydrate in insects, our results indicate that bombyxin reduces the amount of both principal storage carbohydrates in B. mori larvae. It is therefore suggested that although bombyxin is involved in the control of carbohydrate metabolism like insulin, the physiological role of bombyxin in insects is different from that of insulin in mammals.

Localization of insulin-like immunoreactivity in the synganglion of nymphal and adult Dermacentor variabilis (Acari: Ixodidae)

Immunocytochemical staining based on a peroxidase-antiperoxidase method showed neurosecretory cells (NSC) reactive to bovine insulin in five of 18 paraldehyde fuchsin-positive neurosecretory regions (NSR) in the synganglion of unfed adult Dermacentor variabilis. This is the first report of a neuropeptide in an ixodid tick. The insulin-specific immunoreactive cells included the posterior medial group of the protocerebral center, posterior group of dorsal opisthosomal center, anterior lateral group of the dorso-lateral cheliceral center, dorsal group of the frontal stomodeal center, and anterior group of the ventral palpal center. After feeding and mating, females no longer had immunoreactive cells in three of five NSR found in virgin, unfed females. However, two cells of the posterior group in dorsal opisthosomal center and anterior lateral group of the dorso-lateral cheliceral center remained immunoreactive throughout feeding. Fed, mated males continued to display immunoreactive cells in four of five NSR found in the virgin, unfed males. All developmental stages of nymphs examined had insulin-specific immunoreactive cells in two of the five NSR found in unfed adults, including two positively stained cells of the posterior group in dorsal opisthosomal center and anterior group of ventral palpal neurosecretory center.

Phylogeny of the insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and receptors: a molecular approach

The IGFs (IGF-I and IGF-II) are essential for normal mammalian growth and development. Their actions are mediated primarily by their interactions with the type I IGF receptor (IGF-I receptor), a transmembrane tyrosine kinase. The ligands and the IGF-I receptor are structurally related to insulin and to the insulin receptor, respectively. Analysis of evolutionary conservation has often provided insights into essential regions of molecules such as hormones and their receptors. The genes for insulin and IGFs have been partially characterized in a number of vertebrate species extending evolutionarily from humans as far back as fish. The sequences of the exons encoding the mature insulin and IGF peptides are highly conserved among vertebrate species, and IGF-I-like molecules are found in species whose origins extend back as much as 550 million years. The insulin receptor is also highly conserved in vertebrate species, and an insulin-receptor-like molecule has been characterized in Drosophila. In contrast, IGF-I receptors have only been characterized in mammalian species and partially studied in Xenopus, in which the tyrosine kinase domain is highly conserved. Studies are presently being undertaken to analyze in more detail the regulation of the genes encoding this important family of growth factors and the structure/function relationships in the gene products themselves.

Insulin-like immunoreactivity and molting in Rhodnius prolixus

Two prominent cells were observed when fifth stage Rhodnius female larval brains were stained with anti-insulin serum. The staining intensity of these cells varied during the instar, being lowest on Day 1 and Days 5 and 6 after feeding. Injection of anti-insulin serum into 5th stage larvae immediately after feeding and on Days 4 and 5 in females and on Days 5 and 6 in males prevented molting. Control antiserum had no effect on the molting process. Injections at other times during the instar had no effect unless serum was injected just prior to ecdysis. Control or anti-insulin serum injected at this time disrupted normal ecdysis. These results are discussed in terms of the control of the developmental program of the insect.

Immunocytochemical localization and immunochemical characterization of an insulin-related peptide in the insect Leucophaea maderae

Immunocytochemical tests with eight monoclonal antibodies against either bovine or human insulin and seven polyclonal antibodies against bovine insulin were carried out to determine the presence of insulin-like neuropeptides in the brain and affiliated neuroendocrine structures of the insect Leucophaea maderae. Reaction products identified in the brain, subesophageal ganglion, and corpus cardiacum-corpus allatum complex indicate the presence of materials resembling mammalian insulins in its antigenic properties. The immunostaining observed with monoclonal antibodies appears to indicate the occurrence of an insulin-related peptide that shows sequential similarities with parts of both the A- and B-chains of mammalian insulin molecules. These suppositions are supported by the results of dot-blot and two-site time-resolved immunofluorometric assay (TRI-IFMA) screenings of fractions of Leucophaea tissue extracts obtained by chromatography. The polyclonal antibodies yielded reaction products in some of the same areas and in additional parts of the neuroendocrine system not visualized by the monoclonal antibodies. Immunoreaction was observed in the following areas: the pars intercerebralis of the protocerebrum, the nervi corporis cardiaci I transporting insulin-like material to the corpus cardiacum, the dorsolateral protocerebral area and the optic lobes, the deutocerebrum, the tritocerebrum, and the subesophageal ganglion. In addition, smaller cell bodies with immunoreactive deposits occur at the border between proto- and deuto-cerebrum, and in the central area of the protocerebrum. The distribution of reactive material in the corpus cardiacum-corpus allatum complex after use of both groups of antibodies was the same.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Homologies between the amino acid sequences of some vertebrate peptide hormones and peptides isolated from invertebrate sources

1. The 4K-prothoracicotropic hormone (PTTH) or bombyxin and the melanization-reddish coloration hormone of the silkworm Bombyx mori resemble insulin and insulin-like growth factors. 2. The family of adipokinetic/red pigment concentrating hormones has some similarity with glucagon. 3. Members of the FMRFamide family are found in vertebrates as well as in invertebrates. 4. In Locusta, a molecule immunologically and biologically related to amphibian melanophore stimulating hormone has been partially characterized. 5. Enkephalins and enkephalin-related peptides occur in insects and other invertebrates. 6. Peptides belonging to the tachykinin family have been isolated from molluscan (Octopus) salivary glands and from insect nervous tissue (Locusta migratoria). 7. Invertebrate arginine-vasotocin homologs have been isolated from an insect (Locusta migratoria) and from a mollusc (Conus). 8. In Leucophaea, Locusta and Drosophila, peptides resembling those of the vertebrate gastrin/cholecystokinin family have been identified. 9. As the number of different neuro-/gut peptides with possible function(s) as hormone, neurotransmitter or neuromodulator is now estimated to be of the order of a few hundred, more similarities will probably show up in the near future.

Do insects really have a homeostatic hypotrehalosaemic hormone?

Since trehalose in insects, in contrast to glucose in mammals, does not enter the haemolymph directly from the digestive tract, but is all synthesized by the insect itself, and furthermore an increased trehalose synthesis during stress and flight does not lead to significant increases in haemolymph trehalose, there seems to be no physiological need for an insect homeostatic hypotrehalosaemic hormone. Experiments in which tissue extractions were found to lower haemolymph trehalose can not prove the existence of such a hormone, while all insect species which so far have been submitted to a trehalose-tolerance test, decrease their haemolymph trehalose concentrations at a rate which can be accounted for by the metabolic use of trehalose. These results therefore indicate the absence, and not the presence, of a homeostatic hypotrehalosaemic hormone. This is also true for blowflies, from which an insulin-like immunoreactive peptide has been isolated. It seems therefore unlikely that this insulin-like peptide is a homeostatic hypotrehalosaemic hormone. The physiological mechanism by which this insulin-like peptide would have to act to function as a hypotrehalosaemic hormone is also an unlikely one. It therefore seems justified to conclude that so far, homeostatic hypotrehalosaemic hormones have not been demonstrated in insects. Furthermore, it may well be that they do not exist.

A substance resembling somatomedin C in the American cockroach

Material antigenically resembling somatomedin C (type I insulin-like growth factor, IGF-I) is demonstrated in the American cockroach Periplaneta americana by means of a monoclonal antibody immunoperoxidase technique. It was localized histochemically in neuronal cell somata and axonal fibers (probably interneurons) of the central nervous/neuroendocrine system and in 'endocrine-type' cells lining the midgut epithelium. The IGF-I-like substance is different from vertebrate insulin and also distinct from materials immunostained by different insulin antibodies in the brain and neurohaemal complex of this insect species. These findings are viewed in the light of recent reports on the presence and action of insulin-like chemicals in insects, and with respect to the existence of an insect brain-midgut system similar to the mammalian brain-gastroenteropancreatic system.

Drosophila insulin degrading enzyme and rat skeletal muscle insulin protease cleave insulin at similar sites

Insulin degradation is an integral part of the cellular action of insulin. Recent evidence suggests that the enzyme insulin protease is involved in the degradation of insulin in mammalian tissues. Drosophila, which has insulin-like hormones and insulin receptor homologues, also expresses an insulin degrading enzyme with properties that are very similar to those of mammalian insulin protease. In the present study, the insulin cleavage products generated by the Drosophila insulin degrading enzyme were identified and compared with the products generated by the mammalian insulin protease. Both purified enzymes were incubated with porcine insulin specifically labeled with 125I on either the A19 or B26 position, and the degradation products were analyzed by HPLC before and after sulfitolysis. Isolation and sequencing of the cleavage products indicated that both enzymes cleave the A chain of intact insulin at identical sites between residues A13 and A14 and A14 and A15. Sequencing of the B chain fragments demonstrated that the Drosophila enzyme cleaves the B chain of insulin at four sites between residues B10 and B11, B14 and B15, B16 and B17, and B25 and B26. These cleavage sites correspond to four of the seven cleavage sites generated by the mammalian insulin protease. These results demonstrate that all the insulin cleavage sites generated by the Drosophila insulin degrading enzyme are shared in common with the mammalian insulin protease. These data support the hypothesis that there is evolutionary conservation of the insulin degrading enzyme and further suggest that this enzyme plays an important role in cellular function.

Immunocytochemical demonstration of vertebrate peptides in invertebrates: the homology concept

During the last years many positive immunocytochemical reactions have been described in invertebrates using antisera to vertebrate regulatory peptides. However, due to the specificity problems associated with immunocytochemistry, the significance of the majority of these findings remains unclear, as so far only a few of the substances causing the immunoreactions in invertebrates have been isolated. It is proposed that comparing the localizations of "vertebrate" peptides in different and not closely related species of an invertebrate group may give a clue to the physiological relevance of the immunoreactive substances.

Tissue localization of Drosophila melanogaster insulin receptor transcripts during development

The Drosophila melanogaster insulin receptor (Drosophila insulin receptor homolog [dIRH]) is similar to its mammalian counterpart in deduced amino acid sequence, subunit structure, and ligand-stimulated protein tyrosine kinase activity. The function of this receptor in D. melanogaster is not yet known. However, a role in development is suggested by the observations that levels of insulin-stimulated kinase activity and expression of dIRH mRNA are maximal during Drosophila midembryogenesis. In this study, a 2.9-kilobase (kb) cDNA clone corresponding to both the dIRH tyrosine kinase domain and some of the 3' untranslated sequence was used to determine the tissue distribution of dIRH mRNA during development. Two principal mRNAs of 11 and 8.6 kb hybridized with the dIRH cDNA in Northern (RNA) blot analysis. The abundance of the 8.6-kb mRNA increased transiently in early embryos, whereas the 11-kb species was most abundant during midembryogenesis. A similar pattern of expression was previously determined by Northern analysis, using a dIRH genomic clone (L. Petruzzelli, R. Herrera, R. Arenas-Garcia, R. Fernandez, M. J. Birnbaum, and O. M. Rosen, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 83:4710-4714, 1986). In situ hybridization revealed dIRH transcripts in the ovaries of adult flies, in which the transcripts appeared to be synthesized by nurse cells for eventual storage as maternal RNA in the mature oocyte. Throughout embryogenesis, dIRH transcripts were ubiquitously expressed, although after midembryogenesis, higher levels were detected in the developing nervous system. Nervous system expression remained elevated throughout the larval stages and persisted in the adult, in which the cortex of the brain and ganglion cells were among the most prominently labeled tissues. In larvae, the imaginal disk cells exhibited comparatively high levels of dIRH mRNA expression. The broad distribution of dIRH mRNA in embryos and imaginal disks is compatible with a role for dIRH in anabolic processes required for cell growth. The apparently elevated expression of dIRH mRNA in nervous tissue during mid- and late embryogenesis coincides with a period of active neurite outgrowth and suggests that dIRH may be involved in this process.

Tissue localization of Drosophila melanogaster insulin receptor transcripts during development

The Drosophila melanogaster insulin receptor (Drosophila insulin receptor homolog [dIRH]) is similar to its mammalian counterpart in deduced amino acid sequence, subunit structure, and ligand-stimulated protein tyrosine kinase activity. The function of this receptor in D. melanogaster is not yet known. However, a role in development is suggested by the observations that levels of insulin-stimulated kinase activity and expression of dIRH mRNA are maximal during Drosophila midembryogenesis. In this study, a 2.9-kilobase (kb) cDNA clone corresponding to both the dIRH tyrosine kinase domain and some of the 3' untranslated sequence was used to determine the tissue distribution of dIRH mRNA during development. Two principal mRNAs of 11 and 8.6 kb hybridized with the dIRH cDNA in Northern (RNA) blot analysis. The abundance of the 8.6-kb mRNA increased transiently in early embryos, whereas the 11-kb species was most abundant during midembryogenesis. A similar pattern of expression was previously determined by Northern analysis, using a dIRH genomic clone (L. Petruzzelli, R. Herrera, R. Arenas-Garcia, R. Fernandez, M. J. Birnbaum, and O. M. Rosen, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 83:4710-4714, 1986). In situ hybridization revealed dIRH transcripts in the ovaries of adult flies, in which the transcripts appeared to be synthesized by nurse cells for eventual storage as maternal RNA in the mature oocyte. Throughout embryogenesis, dIRH transcripts were ubiquitously expressed, although after midembryogenesis, higher levels were detected in the developing nervous system. Nervous system expression remained elevated throughout the larval stages and persisted in the adult, in which the cortex of the brain and ganglion cells were among the most prominently labeled tissues. In larvae, the imaginal disk cells exhibited comparatively high levels of dIRH mRNA expression. The broad distribution of dIRH mRNA in embryos and imaginal disks is compatible with a role for dIRH in anabolic processes required for cell growth. The apparently elevated expression of dIRH mRNA in nervous tissue during mid- and late embryogenesis coincides with a period of active neurite outgrowth and suggests that dIRH may be involved in this process.

Insulin-like material from the digestive tract of the tunicate Pyura pachydermatina (sea tulip)

Gut tissue from the tunicate Pyura pachydermatina (sea tulip) was found to contain a compound or compounds which react with anti-porcine insulin antibodies, but not anti-hag-fish insulin antibodies, and which also stimulate lipogenesis in isolated rat fat cells. The insulin-like material is present in two immunologically active forms, a species of Mr 6000 apparently similar to mammalian insulin, and a high Mr form which expresses biological activity only after further purification by reverse-phase HPLC. The bioactivity of both species is suppressed in the presence of anti-porcine insulin antibodies.

Properties of an in vitro bioassay for hypertrehalosemic hormone of Blaberus discoidalis cockroaches

The ability of the fat body to respond to the hypertrehalosemic action of corpora cardiaca-allata (CC + CA) extracts was measured in vitro with tissue from adult, male Blaberus discoidalis cockroaches. Only trehalose increased in the hemolymph when gland extracts were injected in vivo; likewise, only trehalose levels responded when fat bodies were exposed to gland extracts in vitro. Although fat bodies from 0-day-old animals gave the least response to gland extracts, all animals 5 or more days old showed elevated responses. A linear dose-response occurred between 0.02 and 0.08 CC + CA pair. Fat bodies did not show an in vitro, hypertrehalosemic response to insulin, glucagon, proctolin, dopamine, epinephrine, norepinephrine, serotonin, octopamine, or tyramine. A strong hypertrehalosemic response was found to both synthetic adipokinetic hormone and red-pigment concentrating hormone; however, reversed-phase, thin-layer chromatography of CC + CA extracts and adipokinetic hormone indicated that the hypertrehalosemic effect and the adipokinetic hormone were separate. This in vitro system comprises a relatively rapid, simple, and accurate bioassay for the hypertrehalosemic neurohormone of insects.

Phylogenetical aspects on islet hormone families: a minireview with particular reference to insulin as a growth factor and to the phylogeny of PYY and NPY immunoreactive cells and nerves in the endocrine and exocrine pancreas

A common feature in the phylogeny of the four islet hormones (insulin, somatostatin, glucagon, PP) is that they do not seem to occur in the most primitive metazoan animals investigated so far, namely the coelenterates. However, already in the earliest protostomian invertebrates, such as flatworms and annelids, somatostatin and PP immunoreactive nerve fibres were found. In highly developed forms of protostomian invertebrates, such as insects, all the four islet hormones are represented as immunoreactive nerve cells and nerve fibres in the brain. In deuterostomian invertebrates a brain-gut-axis has evolved as regards somatostatin and PP, whereas insulin and glucagon now seem to occur exclusively as cells of open type in the gut mucosa. This brain-gut-axis for somatostatin and PP persists in all the vertebrates. The insulin cells, however, leave the gut mucosa already in the earliest forms of vertebrates and then appear only as cells in the islet parenchyma and in the mucosa of the bile duct (Agnatha) or in the pancreatic ducts (Gnathostomi). To some extent, glucagon islet cells evolve in a similar manner; here, however, cells immunoreactive with the precursor hormone, glicentin (enteroglucagon), persist in the gastrointestinal tract mucosa. A few PYY immunoreactive cells have been found in the pancreatic islet parenchyma of reptiles and mammals, often as disseminated cells in the acinar tissue. In the pancreas of these phyla NPY only occurs in neurons and nerve fibres. In pilot studies the effects of hagfish insulin as a growth factor have been compared with those of pig insulin on Swiss 3T3 mouse embryonic fibroblasts.

Immunocytochemical localization of peptidergic neurons and neurosecretory cells in the neuro-endocrine system of the Colorado potato beetle with antisera to vertebrate regulatory peptides

A large number of antisera to regulatory vertebrate peptides was tested immunocytochemically on the nervous system of the Colorado potato beetle to further characterize the peptidergic cells of the neuro-endocrine system and to reveal cells participating in endocrine control mechanisms. Neurons, neurosecretory cells, axons and axon terminals were revealed by antisera to ACTH, gastrin, CCK, alpha-endorphin, beta-endorphin, gamma 1-MSH, insulin, motilin, human calcitonin, growth hormone, somatostatin, CRF, ovine prolactin and rat prolactin. Together with previously described results these findings demonstrate that at least 19 different peptidergic cell types are present in the Colorado potato beetle. Several of these cell types are identical with the known neurosecretory cells, while others have not been identified before. The functions of the immunoreactive neurons are as yet unclear, although in two cases the localization of these cells gives some clues. Thus the lateral neurosecretory cells, which are immunoreactive with antisera to beta-endorphin and ovine prolactin, may regulate corpus allatum activity, whereas a CRF immunoreactive substance seems to be used as neurotransmitter by antennal receptors. These immunocytochemical findings do not imply that the immunoreactive substances are evolutionarily related to the vertebrate peptides to which the antisera were raised. It is postulated that if the part of the substance recognized by a certain antiserum is functionally important for the insect, which should be so if the insect peptide is evolutionarily related to its vertebrate homologue, the antiserum should reveal homologous cells in different insect species. The consequence of this hypothesis is, that if an antiserum does not reveal homologous neurons in different insect species, the immunologically demonstrated substance is probably of little physiological importance, and will not be related evolutionarily to the vertebrate analogue. The positive immunocytochemical results in the Colorado potato beetle are discussed in relation to these considerations.

Immunohistochemical identification of growth hormone-releasing factor-like material in the nervous system of an insect, Aeshna cyanea (Odonata)

Cells immunoreactive to antibodies raised against human pancreatic growth hormone releasing factor 1-44-NH2 (hp GRF) were detected in the brain and the suboesophageal ganglion of an insect. The presence of immunoreactive deposits within the insect neurohaemal organ, the corpora cardiaca and within the nervi corporis cardiaci which, at least, transfers part of the neurosecretory products of the brain to the corpora cardiaca, may indicate the participation of GRF-like substance in some neurohormonal function (s) in addition to having probably a neurotransmitter role within the nervous system.