Glutathione-binding site of a bombyx mori theta-class glutathione transferase

Unclassified glutathione-S-transferase AiGSTu1 confers chlorantraniliprole tolerance in Agrotis ipsilon

BACKGROUND

Chlorantraniliprole (CAP) is a diamide insecticide with high efficacy against many pest insects, including the black cutworm, Agrotis ipsilon. Agrotis ipsilon is a serious pest causing significant yield losses in crops. Glutathione-S-transferases (GSTs) belong to a family of metabolic enzymes that can detoxify a wide range of pesticides. However, little is known about the functions of GSTs in CAP tolerance in A. ipsilon.

RESULTS

A cDNA sequence (designated AiGSTu1) encoding an unclassified GST was identified from A. ipsilon. AiGSTu1 is highly expressed during the 3rd -instar larval and the pupal stages. Most of the mRNA transcripts were found in larval Malpighian tubules. Exposure to CAP strongly enhanced AiGSTu1 expression, GST activity, hydrogen peroxide (H2 O2 ) and malondialdehyde levels in larvae. H2 O2 treatment upregulated the transcription level of AiGSTu1, suggesting that CAP-induced oxidative stress may activate AiGSTu1 expression. The activity of recombinant AiGSTu1 was inhibited by CAP in a dose-dependent manner. Metabolism assay results demonstrated that AiGSTu1 is capable of depleting CAP. Overexpression of AiGSTu1 enhanced the tolerance of Escherichia coli cells to H2 O2 and the oxidative stress inducer, cumene hydroperoxide. Silencing of AiGSTu1 by RNA interference increased the susceptibility of A. ipsilon larvae to CAP.

CONCLUSION

The findings of this study provide valuable insights into the potential role of AiGSTu1 in CAP detoxification and will improve our understanding of CAP tolerance in A. ipsilon. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Functional and Structural Diversity of Insect Glutathione S-transferases in Xenobiotic Adaptation

As a superfamily of multifunctional enzymes that is mainly associated with xenobiotic adaptation, glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) facilitate insects' survival under chemical stresses in their environment. GSTs confer xenobiotic adaptation through direct metabolism or sequestration of xenobiotics, and/or indirectly by providing protection against oxidative stress induced by xenobiotic exposure. In this article, a comprehensive overview of current understanding on the versatile functions of insect GSTs in detoxifying chemical compounds is presented. The diverse structures of different classes of insect GSTs, specifically the spatial localization and composition of their amino acid residues constituted in their active sites are also summarized. Recent availability of whole genome sequences of numerous insect species, accompanied by RNA interference, X-ray crystallography, enzyme kinetics and site-directed mutagenesis techniques have significantly enhanced our understanding of functional and structural diversity of insect GSTs.

Delta class glutathione S-transferase (TuGSTd01) from the two-spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae is inhibited by abamectin

GSTs (Glutathione S-transferases) are known to catalyze the nucleophilic attack of the sulfhydryl group of reduced glutathione (GSH) on electrophilic centers of xenobiotic compounds, including insecticides and acaricides. Genome analyses of the polyphagous spider mite herbivore Tetranychus urticae (two-spotted spider mite) revealed the presence of a set of 32 genes that code for secreted proteins belonging to the GST family of enzymes. To better understand the role of these proteins in T. urticae, we have functionally characterized TuGSTd01. Moreover, we have modeled the structure of the enzyme in apo form, as well as in the form with bound inhibitor. We demonstrated that this protein is a glutathione S-transferase that can conjugate glutathione to 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (CDNB). We have tested TuGSTd01 activity with a range of potential substrates such as cinnamic acid, cumene hydroperoxide, and allyl isothiocyanate; however, the enzyme was unable to process these compounds. Using mutagenesis, we showed that putative active site variants S11A, E66A, S67A, and R68A mutants, which were residues predicted to interact directly with GSH, have no measurable activity, and these residues are required for the enzymatic activity of TuGSTd01. There are several reports that associate some T. urticae acaricide resistance with increased activity of GSTs . However, we found that TuGSTd01 is not able to detoxify abamectin; in fact, the acaricide inhibits the enzyme with K_i = 101 μM. Therefore, we suggest that the increased GST activity observed in abamectin resistant T. urticae field populations is a part of the compensatory feedback loop. In this case, the increased production of GSTs and relatively high concentration of GSH in cells allow GSTs to maintain physiological functions despite the presence of the acaricide.

Effects of conserved Arg20, Glu74 and Asp77 on the structure and function of a tau class glutathione S-transferase in rice

The relative position of domains is critical for enzymatic properties of tau class glutathione S-transferases, and altering the position of linker far away from the active center affects catalytic property. Glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) are a family of phase II detoxification enzymes whose main function is to improve plant resistance to stresses. To understand the structural effects of tau class GSTs on their function, using OsGSTU17 as an example, we predicted the residues involved in the interactions between its domains and linker region. We further detected the structural changes in mutants and the corresponding changes in terms of substrate activity and kinetic parameters. Four pairs of residues, including Ala14 and Trp165, Arg20 and Tyr154, Glu74 and Arg98, Asp77 and Met87, forming hydrogen bonds and salt bridges were found to play important roles in maintaining the relative position between the domains and linker region inside the protein. The hydrogen bond between Trp165 and Ala14 affected the structural stability has been demonstrated in our previous study. The mutant R20A lost almost all catalytic activity. Interestingly, the mutant E74A exhibited a significant decrease in activity towards 7-chloro-4-nitrobenzo-2-oxa-1, 3-diazole, 1-chloro-2, 4-dinitrobenzene and 4-nitrobenzyl chloride, while its activity towards substrate cumene hydroperoxide remained unchanged. Compared with other mutants, the mutant D77A exhibited decreased affinity to its substrates and increased activity towards 1-chloro-2, 4-dinitrobenzene and cumene hydroperoxide, but its thermodynamic stability did not change significantly. The relative position of individual domain was critical for enzymatic properties, and the linker which is far away from the active site could change the enzymatic properties of GSTs via altering the relative position of the individual domain. Our results provide insights into the relationship between structure and function of tau class GSTs.

Investigation of the Substrate-Binding Site of a Prostaglandin E Synthase in Bombyx mori

Prostaglandin E synthase (PGES) catalyzes the conversion of prostaglandin H₂ to prostaglandin E₂ in the presence of glutathione (GSH) in mammals. Amid the limited knowledge on prostaglandin and its related enzymes in insects, we recently identified PGES from the silkworm Bombyx mori (bmPGES) and determined its crystal structure complexed with GSH. In the current study, we investigated the substrate-binding site of bmPGES by site-directed mutagenesis and X-ray crystallography. We found that the residues Tyr107, Val155, Met159, and Glu203 are located in the catalytic pockets of bmPGES, and mutagenesis of each residue reduced the bmPGES activity. Our results suggest that these four residues contribute to the catalytic activity of bmPGES. Overall, this structure-function study holds implications in controlling pests by designing rational and efficient pesticides.

Investigation of the active site of an unclassified glutathione transferase in Bombyx mori by alanine scanning

Glutathione transferase (GST) is an important class of detoxification enzymes that are vital for defense against various xenobiotics and cellular oxidative stress. Previously, we had reported an unclassified glutathione transferase 2 in Bombyx mori (bmGSTu2) to be responsible for detoxifying diazinon. In this study, we aimed to identify the amino acid residues that constitute a hydrogen-bonding network important for GST activity. Site-directed mutagenesis of bmGSTu2 suggested that residues Asn102, Pro162, and Ser166 contribute to its catalytic activity.

Transcriptome Sequencing of the Striped Cucumber Beetle, Acalymma vittatum (F.), Reveals Numerous Sex-Specific Transcripts and Xenobiotic Detoxification Genes

Acalymma vittatum (F.), the striped cucumber beetle, is an important pest of cucurbit crops in the contintental United States, damaging plants through both direct feeding and vectoring of a bacterial wilt pathogen. Besides providing basic biological knowledge, biosequence data for A. vittatum would be useful towards the development of molecular biopesticides to complement existing population control methods. However, no such datasets currently exist. In this study, three biological replicates apiece of male and female adult insects were sequenced and assembled into a set of 630,139 transcripts (of which 232,899 exhibited hits to one or more sequences in NCBI NR). Quantitative analyses identified 2898 genes differentially expressed across the male–female divide, and qualitative analyses characterized the insect’s resistome, comprising the glutathione S-transferase, carboxylesterase, and cytochrome P450 monooxygenase families of xenobiotic detoxification genes. In summary, these data provide useful insights into genes associated with sex differentiation and this beetle’s innate genetic capacity to develop resistance to synthetic pesticides; furthermore, these genes may serve as useful targets for potential use in molecular-based biocontrol technologies.

Transcriptomic analysis reveals insights into deep-sea adaptations of the dominant species, Shinkaia crosnieri (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura), inhabiting both hydrothermal vents and cold seeps

Background

Hydrothermal vents and cold seeps are typical deep-sea chemosynthetically-driven ecosystems that allow high abundance of specialized macro-benthos. To gather knowledge about the genetic basis of adaptation to these extreme environments, species shared between different habitats, especially for the dominant species, are of particular interest. The galatheid squat lobster, Shinkaia crosnieri Baba and Williams, 1998, is one of the few dominant species inhabiting both deep-sea hydrothermal vents and cold seeps. In this study, we performed transcriptome analyses of S. crosnieri collected from the Iheya North hydrothermal vent (HV) and a cold seep in the South China Sea (CS) to provide insights into how this species has evolved to thrive in different deep-sea chemosynthetic ecosystems.

Results

We analyzed 5347 orthologs between HV and CS to identify genes under positive selection through the maximum likelihood approach. A total of 82 genes were identified to be positively selected and covered diverse functional categories, potentially indicating their importance for S. crosnieri to cope with environmental heterogeneity between deep-sea vents and seeps. Among 39,806 annotated unigenes, a large number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between HV and CS, including 339 and 206 genes significantly up-regulated in HV and CS, respectively. Most of the DEGs associated with stress response and immunity were up-regulated in HV, possibly allowing S. crosnieri to increase its capability to manage more environmental stresses in the hydrothermal vents.

Conclusions

We provide the first comprehensive transcriptomic resource for the deep-sea squat lobster, S. crosnieri, inhabiting both hydrothermal vents and cold seeps. A number of stress response and immune-related genes were positively selected and/or differentially expressed, potentially indicating their important roles for S. crosnieri to thrive in both deep-sea vents and cold seeps. Our results indicated that genetic adaptation of S. crosnieri to different deep-sea chemosynthetic environments might be mediated by adaptive evolution of functional genes related to stress response and immunity, and alterations in their gene expression that lead to different stress resistance. However, further work is required to test these proposed hypotheses. All results can constitute important baseline data for further studies towards elucidating the adaptive mechanisms in deep-sea crustaceans.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12864-019-5753-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Characterisation of a diazinon-metabolising glutathione S-transferase in the silkworm Bombyx mori by X-ray crystallography and genome editing analysis

Previously, we found an unclassified glutathione S-transferase 2 (bmGSTu2) in the silkworm Bombyx mori that conjugates glutathione to 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene and also metabolises diazinon, an organophosphate insecticide. Here, we provide a structural and genome-editing characterisation of the diazinon-metabolising glutathione S-transferase in B. mori. The structure of bmGSTu2 was determined at 1.68 Å by X-ray crystallography. Mutation of putative amino acid residues in the substrate-binding site showed that Pro13, Tyr107, Ile118, Phe119, and Phe211 are crucial for enzymatic function. bmGSTu2 gene disruption resulted in a decrease in median lethal dose values to an organophosphate insecticide and a decrease in acetylcholine levels in silkworms. Taken together, these results indicate that bmGSTu2 could metabolise an organophosphate insecticide. Thus, this study provides insights into the physiological role of bmGSTu2 in silkworms, detoxification of organophosphate insecticides, and drug targets for the development of a novel insecticide.

Enzymatic characterization of two epsilon-class glutathione S-transferases of Spodoptera litura

Two cDNAs encoding glutathione S-transferase (GST) of the tobacco cutworm, Spodoptera litura, were cloned by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. The deduced amino acid sequences of the resulting clones revealed 32-51% identities to the epsilon-class GSTs from other organisms. The recombinant proteins were functionally overexpressed in Escherichia coli cells in soluble form and were purified to homogeneity. The enzymes were capable of catalyzing the bioconjugation of glutathione with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene, 1,2-epoxy-3-(4-nitrophenoxy)-propane, and ethacrynic acid. A competition assay revealed that the GST activity was inhibited by insecticides, suggesting that it could be conducive to insecticide tolerance in the tobacco cutworm.

Biochemical characterization of an unclassified glutathione S-transferase of Plutella xylostella

cDNA encoding an unclassified glutathione S-transferase (GST) of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella, was cloned by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. The resulting clone was sequenced and the amino acid sequence deduced, revealing 67%-73% identities with unclassified GSTs from other organisms. A recombinant protein was functionally overexpressed in Escherichia coli cells in a soluble form and purified to homogeneity. The enzyme was capable to catalyze the transformation of 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene and ethacrynic acid with glutathione. A competition assay revealed that GST activity was inhibited by insecticides, suggesting that the enzyme could contribute to insecticide metabolism in the diamondback moth.

Identification of a diazinon-metabolizing glutathione S-transferase in the silkworm, Bombyx mori

The glutathione S-transferase superfamily play key roles in the metabolism of numerous xenobiotics. We report herein the identification and characterization of a novel glutathione S-transferase in the silkworm, Bombyx mori. The enzyme (bmGSTu2) conjugates glutathione to 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene, as well as metabolizing diazinon, one of the organophosphate insecticides. Quantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction analysis of transcripts demonstrated that bmGSTu2 expression was induced 1.7-fold in a resistant strain of B. mori. Mutagenesis of putative amino acid residues in the glutathione-binding site revealed that Ile54, Glu66, Ser67, and Asn68 are crucial for enzymatic function. These results provide insights into the catalysis of glutathione conjugation in silkworm by bmGSTu2 and into the detoxification of organophosphate insecticides.