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Liu F, Zhao H, Li Q, Wu L, Cao D, Zhang Y, Huang ZY. MicroRNA ame-let-7 targets Amdop2 to increase sucrose sensitivity in honey bees (Apis mellifera). Front Zool 2023; 20:41. [PMID: 38110949 PMCID: PMC10726540 DOI: 10.1186/s12983-023-00519-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/20/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND As an important catecholamine neurotransmitter in invertebrates and vertebrates, dopamine plays multiple roles in the life of the honey bee. Dopamine receptors (DA), which specifically bind to dopamine to activate downstream cascades, have been reported to be involved in honey bee reproduction, division of labour, as well as learning and motor behaviour. However, how dopamine receptors regulate honey bee behavior remains uninvestigated. RESULTS The expression level of Amdop2 in the brain increased with the age of worker bees, which was just the opposite trend of ame-let-7. Inhibition of ame-let-7 through feeding an inhibitor upregulated Amdop2 expression; conversely, overexpression of ame-let-7 through a mimic downregulated Amdop2. Moreover, knockdown of Amdop2 in forager brain led to significantly higher sucrose responsiveness, which is similar to the phenotype of overexpression of ame-let-7. Finally, we confirmed that ame-let-7 directly targets Amdop2 in vitro by a luciferase reporter assay. CONCLUSIONS ame-let-7 is involved in the dopamine receptor signaling pathway to modulate the sucrose sensitivity in honey bees. Specifically, it down-regulates Amdop2, which then induces higher responses to sucrose. These results further unraveled the diverse mechanisms of the dopamine pathway in the regulation of insect behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fang Liu
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Institute of Zoology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510260, People's Republic of China.
| | - Hongxia Zhao
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Institute of Zoology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510260, People's Republic of China
| | - Qiang Li
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Institute of Zoology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510260, People's Republic of China
| | - Lixian Wu
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Institute of Zoology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510260, People's Republic of China
| | - Dainan Cao
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Institute of Zoology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510260, People's Republic of China
| | - Yuan Zhang
- Yunnan Academy of Biodiversity, Southwest Forestry University, 650224, Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Zachary Y Huang
- Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA.
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Liu X, Zhang Z, Hu B, Chen K, Yu Y, Xiang H, Tan A. Single-cell transcriptomes provide insights into expansion of glial cells in Bombyx mori. INSECT SCIENCE 2023. [PMID: 37984500 DOI: 10.1111/1744-7917.13294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2023] [Revised: 09/17/2023] [Accepted: 10/03/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
The diversity of cell types in the brain and how these change during different developmental stages, remains largely unknown. The life cycle of insects is short and goes through 4 distinct stages including embryonic, larval, pupal, and adult stages. During postembryonic life, the larval brain transforms into a mature adult version after metamorphosis. The silkworm, Bombyx mori, is a lepidopteran model insect. Here, we characterized the brain cell repertoire of larval and adult B. mori by obtaining 50 708 single-cell transcriptomes. Seventeen and 12 cell clusters from larval and adult brains were assigned based on marker genes, respectively. Identified cell types include Kenyon cells, optic lobe cells, monoaminergic neurons, surface glia, and astrocyte glia. We further assessed the cell type compositions of larval and adult brains. We found that the transition from larva to adult resulted in great expansion of glial cells. The glial cell accounted for 49.8% of adult midbrain cells. Compared to flies and ants, the mushroom body kenyon cell is insufficient in B. mori, which accounts for 5.4% and 3.6% in larval and adult brains, respectively. Analysis of neuropeptide expression showed that the abundance and specificity of expression varied among individual neuropeptides. Intriguingly, we found that ion transport peptide was specifically expressed in glial cells of larval and adult brains. The cell atlas dataset provides an important resource to explore cell diversity, neural circuits and genetic profiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaojing Liu
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, School of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, The Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Zhongjie Zhang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, School of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, The Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Bo Hu
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, School of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, The Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Kai Chen
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, School of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, The Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Ye Yu
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, School of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, The Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Hui Xiang
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Insect Development Regulation and Application Research, Institute of Insect Science and Technology and School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Anjiang Tan
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, School of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, The Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China
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Will I, Beckerson WC, de Bekker C. Using machine learning to predict protein-protein interactions between a zombie ant fungus and its carpenter ant host. Sci Rep 2023; 13:13821. [PMID: 37620441 PMCID: PMC10449854 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-40764-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Parasitic fungi produce proteins that modulate virulence, alter host physiology, and trigger host responses. These proteins, classified as a type of "effector," often act via protein-protein interactions (PPIs). The fungal parasite Ophiocordyceps camponoti-floridani (zombie ant fungus) manipulates Camponotus floridanus (carpenter ant) behavior to promote transmission. The most striking aspect of this behavioral change is a summit disease phenotype where infected hosts ascend and attach to an elevated position. Plausibly, interspecific PPIs drive aspects of Ophiocordyceps infection and host manipulation. Machine learning PPI predictions offer high-throughput methods to produce mechanistic hypotheses on how this behavioral manipulation occurs. Using D-SCRIPT to predict host-parasite PPIs, we found ca. 6000 interactions involving 2083 host proteins and 129 parasite proteins, which are encoded by genes upregulated during manipulated behavior. We identified multiple overrepresentations of functional annotations among these proteins. The strongest signals in the host highlighted neuromodulatory G-protein coupled receptors and oxidation-reduction processes. We also detected Camponotus structural and gene-regulatory proteins. In the parasite, we found enrichment of Ophiocordyceps proteases and frequent involvement of novel small secreted proteins with unknown functions. From these results, we provide new hypotheses on potential parasite effectors and host targets underlying zombie ant behavioral manipulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian Will
- Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, 4110 Libra Drive, Orlando, FL, 32816, USA.
| | - William C Beckerson
- Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, 4110 Libra Drive, Orlando, FL, 32816, USA
| | - Charissa de Bekker
- Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, 4110 Libra Drive, Orlando, FL, 32816, USA.
- Department of Biology, Microbiology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
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