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Luo LL, Gui SH, Guo ZP, Feng JW, Smagghe G, Liu TX, Liu M, Yi TC. Efficient CRISPR/Cas9-mediated ebony gene editing in the greater wax moth Galleria mellonella. INSECT SCIENCE 2024. [PMID: 39121464 DOI: 10.1111/1744-7917.13427] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2024] [Revised: 06/05/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 08/11/2024]
Abstract
The greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella (Lepidoptera, Pyralidae), is a major bee pest that inflicts considerable harm on beehives, leading to economic losses. It also serves as a valuable resource insect and a model organism. The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9) system plays a crucial role in improving economic insect breeding and developing efficient agricultural pest management systems in Lepidoptera. However, the CRISPR/Cas9 protocols have not been developed for G. mellonella. Here, the Gmebony knockout (KO) strain was established using the CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing system. We obtained Gmebony KO strain in the G4 generation, which took approximately 10 months. When compared with wild-type, the head, notum, and the terminal abdominal surface of 1st to 4th instar larvae in the KO strain changed from yellow to brown, and these regions of the KO strain gradually transformed into a black color from the 5th instar larvae, and the body color of the adult moth in the KO strain changed to black. The developmental period of the early larval and the following larval instars extended. The embryonic hatchability of the Gmebony KO strain was significantly decreased. The pupal body weight of the Gmebony KO strain was not affected. The feasibility of the CRISPR/Cas9 methodology was validated by single-target editing of Gmebony. Our findings provide the first evidence that the ebony gene can serve as a pigmentation reference gene for genetic modifications of G. mellonella. Meanwhile, it can be utilized in the development of genome editing control strategies and for gene function analyses in G. mellonella.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li-Lin Luo
- Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory for Agricultural Pest Management of the Mountainous Region, Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
- Guizhou Institute of Biology, Guizhou Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, China
| | - Shun-Hua Gui
- Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory for Agricultural Pest Management of the Mountainous Region, Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
- Institute of Plant Health and Medicine, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
| | - Zhen-Ping Guo
- Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory for Agricultural Pest Management of the Mountainous Region, Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
| | - Jia-Wei Feng
- Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory for Agricultural Pest Management of the Mountainous Region, Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
| | - Guy Smagghe
- Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory for Agricultural Pest Management of the Mountainous Region, Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
| | - Tong-Xian Liu
- Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory for Agricultural Pest Management of the Mountainous Region, Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
- Institute of Plant Health and Medicine, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
| | - Man Liu
- Guizhou Institute of Biology, Guizhou Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, China
| | - Tian-Ci Yi
- Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory for Agricultural Pest Management of the Mountainous Region, Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
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Shi Y, Li H, Nachman RJ, Liu TX, Smagghe G. Insecticidal efficacy and risk assessment of different neuropeptide analog combinations against the peach-potato aphid following topical exposure. PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE 2023; 79:226-233. [PMID: 36129097 DOI: 10.1002/ps.7192] [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: 06/30/2022] [Revised: 09/13/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Insect neuropeptides control essential physiological metabolic activities. In our previous studies, Capability/CAP2b (PK/CAPA) analog 1895 applied alone or as a combination of CAPA analogs (1895 + 2315) was reported to decrease aphid fitness. While this was obtained with the combination of two peptide analogs of the same neuropeptide class, the effect of combining peptide analogs of different neuropeptide classes has not been explored so far. RESULTS In this study, we assessed the effect of combinations of the PK/CAPA analog 1895 with neuropeptide analogs of four different classes [adipokinetic hormone (AKH) analog: 2271; myosuppressin analog: 2434; kinin analog: 2460; tachykinin-related peptide analog: 2463] on the fitness of aphids. We found that the combination of 1895 and AKH analog 2271 was the most effective one to control Myzus persicae. The triple combination 1895 + 2271 + 2315 provided a synergistic effect by further increasing aphid mortality and reducing reproduction relative to 1895 + 2315. Additionally, a biosafety assessment of the combination 1895 + 2271 + 2315 showed no significant lethal nor sub-lethal effects on survival rates and food intake for the pollinator (Bombus terrestris) and the two representative natural enemies (Harmonia axyridis and Nasonia vitripennis). CONCLUSION These results could facilitate establishment of the triple combination 1895 + 2271 + 2315, and/or inclusion of second generation analogs, as alternatives to broad spectrum and less friendly insecticides. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Shi
- College of Plant Health and Medicine, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
- Department of Plants and Crops, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Hao Li
- College of Plant Health and Medicine, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
| | - Ronald J Nachman
- Insect Neuropeptide Laboratory, Insect Control and Cotton Disease Research Unit, Southern Plains Agricultural Research Center, US Department of Agriculture, College Station, TX, USA
| | - Tong-Xian Liu
- College of Plant Health and Medicine, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
- Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
| | - Guy Smagghe
- Department of Plants and Crops, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Department of Biology, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
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Park I, Smith L. Topical Application of Synthetic Hormones Terminated Reproductive Diapause of a Univoltine Weed Biological Control Agent. INSECTS 2021; 12:834. [PMID: 34564274 PMCID: PMC8468177 DOI: 10.3390/insects12090834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2021] [Revised: 09/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Classical biological control is an important method for controlling invasive alien weeds. Univoltine insects can be highly effective biological control agents of annual weeds because they are well synchronized with their host plant. However, having only one generation per year makes it difficult and slow to multiply them in the laboratory for initial field releases. If it were possible to terminate reproductive diapause early, then we could rear multiple generations per year, which would greatly increase annual production. We used a recently approved biocontrol agent, Ceratapion basicorne (a univoltine weevil), for yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis) as a model system to study the use of two insect hormones, 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) and methoprene, to terminate reproductive diapause. Methoprene (1 μg applied topically) terminated reproductive diapause of female weevils, whereas doses of 0.0, 0.01 and 0.1 μg did not. The combination of methoprene and 20E had a stronger effect and induced an increase in eggs (1.51 ± 0.16 eggs/day, mean ± SE) compared with a methoprene only group (1.00 ± 0.13 eggs/day), and a control group (0.21 ± 0.04 eggs/day). Thus, topical application of these hormones should enable us to rear the weevil out of its normal season and produce more than one generation per year, which will increase productivity of mass-rearing it for field release. Once released in the field, the insect would continue as a univoltine agent that is well-synchronized with its host plant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ikju Park
- Invasive Species and Pollinator Health Research Unit, USDA ARS Western Regional Research Center, 800 Buchanan St., Albany, CA 94706, USA;
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
- School of Applied Bioscience, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, Korea
| | - Lincoln Smith
- Invasive Species and Pollinator Health Research Unit, USDA ARS Western Regional Research Center, 800 Buchanan St., Albany, CA 94706, USA;
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Gao Y, Ren R, Peng J, Wang D, Shi X, Zheng L, Zhang Z, Zhu C, Liu Y, Dai L, Zhang D. The Gustavus Gene Can Regulate the Fecundity of the Green Peach Aphid, Myzus persicae (Sulzer). Front Physiol 2021; 11:596392. [PMID: 33510645 PMCID: PMC7835840 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2020.596392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 12/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Myzus persicae (Sulzer), commonly known as the green peach aphid, is a notorious pest that causes substantial losses to a range of crops and can transmit several plant viruses, including potato virus Y (PVY). Chemical insecticides provide only partial control of this pest and their use is not environmentally sustainable. In recent years, many genes related to growth, development, and reproduction have been used as targets for pest control. These include Gustavus (Gus), a highly conserved gene that has been reported to play an essential part in the genesis of germline cells and, hence, in fecundity in the model insect Drosophila melanogaster. We hypothesized that the Gustavus (Gus) gene was a potential target that could be used to regulate the M. persicae population. In this study, we report the first investigation of an ortholog of Gus in M. persicae, designated MpGus, and describe its role in the fecundity of this insect. First, we identified the MpGus mRNA sequence in the M. persicae transcriptome database, verified its identity with reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and then evaluated the transcription levels of MpGus in M. persicae nymphs of different instars and tissues with real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR). To investigate its role in regulating the fecundity of M. persicae, we used RNA interference (RNAi) to silence the expression of MpGus in adult insects; this resulted in a significant reduction in the number of embryos (50.6%, P < 0.01) and newborn nymphs (55.7%, P < 0.01) in the treated aphids compared with controls. Interestingly, MpGus was also significantly downregulated in aphids fed on tobacco plants that had been pre-infected with PVYN, concomitant with a significant reduction (34.1%, P < 0.01) in M. persicae fecundity. Collectively, these data highlight the important role of MpGus in regulating fecundity in M. persicae and indicate that MpGus is a promising RNAi target gene for control of this pest species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Gao
- College of Plant Protection, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, China.,Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Science, Changsha, China
| | - Ruifan Ren
- Long Ping Branch, Graduate School of Hunan University, Changsha, China
| | - Jing Peng
- Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Science, Changsha, China
| | - Dongwei Wang
- Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Science, Changsha, China
| | - Xiaobin Shi
- Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Science, Changsha, China
| | - Limin Zheng
- Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Science, Changsha, China
| | - Zhuo Zhang
- Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Science, Changsha, China
| | - Chunhui Zhu
- Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Science, Changsha, China
| | - Yong Liu
- Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Science, Changsha, China
| | - Liangying Dai
- College of Plant Protection, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, China
| | - Deyong Zhang
- College of Plant Protection, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, China.,Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Science, Changsha, China
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