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Li N, Dong R, Zeng H, Zhang Y, Huang R, Liu W, Cao F, Yu J, Liao M, Chen J, Zhang W, Huang Z, Wang J, Li L, Zhu S, Huang D, Li Z, Zhang X, Yuan D, Chen N, Fan Y, Wang G, Schal C, Pan Y, Li S. Two sex pheromone receptors for sexual communication in the American cockroach. SCIENCE CHINA. LIFE SCIENCES 2024; 67:1455-1467. [PMID: 38523236 DOI: 10.1007/s11427-023-2548-3] [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: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 02/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/26/2024]
Abstract
Volatile sex pheromones are vital for sexual communication between males and females. Females of the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana, produce and emit two sex pheromone components, periplanone-A (PA) and periplanone-B (PB). Although PB is the major sex attractant and can attract males, how it interacts with PA in regulating sexual behaviors is still unknown. In this study, we found that in male cockroaches, PA counteracted PB attraction. We identified two odorant receptors (ORs), OR53 and OR100, as PB/PA and PA receptors, respectively. OR53 and OR100 were predominantly expressed in the antennae of sexually mature males, and their expression levels were regulated by the sex differentiation pathway and nutrition-responsive signals. Cellular localization of OR53 and OR100 in male antennae further revealed that two types of sensilla coordinate a complex two-pheromone-two-receptor pathway in regulating cockroach sexual behaviors. These findings indicate distinct functions of the two sex pheromone components, identify their receptors and possible regulatory mechanisms underlying the male-specific and age-dependent sexual behaviors, and can guide novel strategies for pest management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Na Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, 514589, China.
| | - Renke Dong
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, 514589, China
| | - Huanchao Zeng
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, 514589, China
| | - Yan Zhang
- Lingnan Guangdong Laboratory of Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, 518000, China
| | - Run Huang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Wei Liu
- Lingnan Guangdong Laboratory of Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, 518000, China
| | - Fengming Cao
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Jincong Yu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Mingtao Liao
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Jingyou Chen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Wenlei Zhang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Zejian Huang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Jiahui Wang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Li Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Shen Zhu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, 514589, China
| | - Danyan Huang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Zining Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Xiaoshuai Zhang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Dongwei Yuan
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Nan Chen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Yongliang Fan
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, and Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management on the Loess Plateau of Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, China
| | - Guirong Wang
- Lingnan Guangdong Laboratory of Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, 518000, China
| | - Coby Schal
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, 27695, USA
| | - Yufeng Pan
- The Key Laboratory of Developmental Genes and Human Disease, School of Life Science and Technology, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, China.
| | - Sheng Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, 514589, China.
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Pan Q, Darras H, Keller L. LncRNA gene ANTSR coordinates complementary sex determination in the Argentine ant. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadp1532. [PMID: 38820161 PMCID: PMC11141628 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adp1532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2024] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/02/2024]
Abstract
Animals have evolved various sex determination systems. Here, we describe a newly found mechanism. A long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) transduces complementary sex determination (CSD) signal in the invasive Argentine ant. In this haplodiploid species, we identified a 5-kilobase hyper-polymorphic region underlying CSD: Heterozygous embryos become females, while homozygous and hemizygous embryos become males. Heterozygosity at the CSD locus correlates with higher expression of ANTSR, a gene that overlaps with the CSD locus and specifies an lncRNA transcript. ANTSR knockdown in CSD heterozygotes leads to male development. Comparative analyses indicated that, in Hymenoptera, ANTSR is an ancient yet rapidly evolving gene. This study reveals an lncRNA involved in genetic sex determination, alongside a previously unknown regulatory mechanism underlying sex determination based on complementarity among noncoding alleles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiaowei Pan
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hugo Darras
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Laurent Keller
- Social Evolution Unit, Cornuit 8, BP 855, Chesières, Switzerland
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3
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Hull JJ, Heu CC, Gross RJ, LeRoy DM, Schutze IX, Langhorst D, Fabrick JA, Brent CS. Doublesex is essential for masculinization but not feminization in Lygus hesperus. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2024; 166:104085. [PMID: 38307215 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104085] [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: 09/30/2023] [Revised: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024]
Abstract
In most holometabolous insects, sex differentiation occurs via a hierarchical cascade of transcription factors, with doublesex (dsx) regulating genes that control sex-specific traits. Although less is known in hemimetabolous insects, early evidence suggests that substantial differences exist from more evolutionarily advanced insects. Here, we identified and characterized dsx in Lygus hesperus (western tarnished plant bug), a hemipteran pest of many agricultural crops in western North America. The full-length transcript for L. hesperus dsx (Lhdsx) and several variants encode proteins with conserved DNA binding and oligomerization domains. Transcript profiling revealed that Lhdsx is ubiquitously expressed, likely undergoes alternative pre-mRNA splicing, and, unlike several model insects, is sex-biased rather than sex-specific. Embryonic RNA interference (RNAi) of Lhdsx only impacted sex development in adult males, which lacked both internal reproductive organs and external genitalia. No discernible impacts on adult female development or reproductivity were observed. RNAi knockdown of Lhdsx in nymphs likewise only affected adult males, which lacked the characteristic dimorphic coloration but had dramatically elevated vitellogenin transcripts. Gene knockout of Lhdsx by CRISPR/Cas9 editing yielded only females in G0 and strongly biased heterozygous G1 offspring to females with the few surviving males showing severely impaired genital development. These results indicate that L. hesperus male development requires Lhdsx, whereas female development proceeds via a basal pathway that functions independently of dsx. A fundamental understanding of sex differentiation in L. hesperus could be important for future gene-based management strategies of this important agricultural pest.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Joe Hull
- USDA ARS, U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, Maricopa, AZ, 85138, USA.
| | - Chan C Heu
- USDA ARS, U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, Maricopa, AZ, 85138, USA
| | - Roni J Gross
- USDA ARS, U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, Maricopa, AZ, 85138, USA
| | - Dannialle M LeRoy
- USDA ARS, U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, Maricopa, AZ, 85138, USA
| | - Inana X Schutze
- USDA ARS, U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, Maricopa, AZ, 85138, USA
| | - Daniel Langhorst
- USDA ARS, U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, Maricopa, AZ, 85138, USA
| | - Jeffrey A Fabrick
- USDA ARS, U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, Maricopa, AZ, 85138, USA
| | - Colin S Brent
- USDA ARS, U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center, Maricopa, AZ, 85138, USA
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4
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Fujiwara K, Miyazaki S, Maekawa K. Candidate target genes of the male-specific expressed Doublesex in the termite Reticulitermes speratus. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0299900. [PMID: 38427681 PMCID: PMC10906832 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0299900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2023] [Accepted: 02/17/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Eusocial insects such as termites, ants, bees, and wasps exhibit a reproductive division of labor. The developmental regulation of reproductive organ (ovaries and testes) is crucial for distinguishing between reproductive and sterile castes. The development of reproductive organ in insects is regulated by sex-determination pathways. The sex determination gene Doublesex (Dsx), encoding transcription factors, plays an important role in this pathway. Therefore, clarifying the function of Dsx in the developmental regulation of sexual traits is important to understand the social evolution of eusocial insects. However, no studies have reported the function of Dsx in hemimetabolous eusocial group termites. In this study, we searched for binding sites and candidate target genes of Dsx in species with available genome information as the first step in clarifying the function of Dsx in termites. First, we focused on the Reticulitermes speratus genome and identified 101 candidate target genes of Dsx. Using a similar method, we obtained 112, 39, and 76 candidate Dsx target genes in Reticulitermes lucifugus, Coptotermes formosanus, and Macrotermes natalensis, respectively. Second, we compared the candidate Dsx target genes between species and identified 37 common genes between R. speratus and R. lucifugus. These included several genes probably involved in spermatogenesis and longevity. However, only a few common target genes were identified between R. speratus and the other two species. Finally, Dsx dsRNA injection resulted in the differential expression of several target genes, including piwi-like protein and B-box type zinc finger protein ncl-1 in R. speratus. These results provide valuable resource data for future functional analyses of Dsx in termites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kokuto Fujiwara
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, Japan
| | - Satoshi Miyazaki
- Graduate School of Agriculture, Tamagawa University, Machida, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kiyoto Maekawa
- Academic Assembly, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, Japan
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Zhang P, Yang Y, Xu Y, Cui Z. Analyses of the Dmrt family in a decapod crab, Eriocheir sinensis uncover new facets on the evolution of DM domain genes. Front Physiol 2023; 14:1201846. [PMID: 37304820 PMCID: PMC10252143 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1201846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2023] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/13/2023] Open
Abstract
DM domain genes are a group of transcription factors that are integral to sexual development and its evolution in metazoans. Their functions and regulatory mechanisms are not well understood in Malacostraca (crabs and crayfish) while these sex regulators have been widely identified in the past decade. In this study, the Dmrt family was investigated in the decapod crab, Eriocheir sinensis. We find that most members of the EsDmrt family begin to enrich around the juvenile 1 stage. In reproductive organs, EsDsx1, EsDsx2, EsiDMY and EsiDmrt1a highly express in the male-specific androgenic gland (AG), while EsDmrt-like, EsDsx-like, EsDmrt11E, and EsiDmrt1b show relatively high expression in testis. Also, we find the highly aberrant expression of EsiDMY and EsiDmrt1a in the chimeric AG, strongly indicating their function in AG development. Moreover, RNA interference of EsDsx1, EsiDMY, and EsiDmrt1a results in a significant decrease in transcription of the Insulin-like androgenic hormone (IAG), respectively. Our findings suggest that Dmrt genes in E. sinensis primarily function in male sexual differentiation, especially in AG development. Besides, this study identifies two unique groups of Dmrt genes in Malacostraca: Dsx and iDmrt1. In Malacostraca Dsx, we uncover a cryptic mutation in the eight zinc motif-specific residues, which were firmly believed to be invariant across the Dmrt family. This mutation sets the Malacostraca Dsx apart from all the other Dmrt genes and implies a different way of transcriptional regulation. Genes from the iDmrt1 group show phylogenetical limitation to the malacostracan species and underwent positive selection, suggesting their highly specialized gene function to this class. Based on these findings, we propose that Dsx and iDmrt1 in Malacostraca have developed unique transcriptional regulation mechanisms to facilitate AG development. We hope that this study would contribute to our understandings of sexual development in Malacostraca and provide new insights into the evolutionary history of the Dmrt family.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng Zhang
- School of Marine Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo, China
| | - Yanan Yang
- School of Marine Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo, China
| | - Yuanfeng Xu
- School of Marine Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo, China
| | - Zhaoxia Cui
- School of Marine Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo, China
- Laboratory for Marine Biology and Biotechnology, Pilot Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology (Qingdao), Qingdao, China
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Miyakawa MO, Miyakawa H. Transformer gene regulates feminization under two complementary sex determination loci in the ant, Vollenhovia emeryi. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2023; 156:103938. [PMID: 37028496 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2023.103938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Revised: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Organisms that reproduce sexually have evolved well-organized mechanisms to determine two sexes. Some hymenopterans (such as ants, bees, and wasps) have a complementary sex-determination system in which heterozygosity at one CSD locus induces female development, whereas hemi- or homozygosity at the locus induces male development. This system can generate a high cost of inbreeding, as individuals that are homozygous at the locus become sterile, diploid males. On the other hand, some hymenopterans have evolved a multi-locus, complementary, sex-determination system in which heterozygosity in at least one CSD locus induces female development. This system effectively reduces the proportion of sterile diploid males; however, how these multiple
primary signals based on CSD pass through a molecular cascade to regulate downstream genes has remained unclear. To clarify this matter, we used a backcross to investigate the molecular cascade in the ant, Vollenhovia emeryi, with two CSD loci. Here we show by gene disruption that transformer (tra) is necessary for proper feminization. Expression analysis of tra and doublesex (dsx) showed that heterozygosity in at least one of the two CSD loci is sufficient to promote female sex determination. Analysis of overexpression suggested that female-type Tra protein promotes splicing of tra pre-mRNA to female isoform by a positive-regulatory-feedback loop. Our data also showed that tra affects splicing of dsx. We conclude that two-loci sex determination system in V. emeryi evolved based on tra-dsx splicing cascade that is well conserved in other insect species. Finally, we suggest a cascade model to arrive at a binary determination of sex under multiple primary signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Misato Okamoto Miyakawa
- Center for Bioscience Research and Education, Utsunomiya University, 350, Minemachi, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, 321-8505, Japan.
| | - Hitoshi Miyakawa
- Center for Bioscience Research and Education, Utsunomiya University, 350, Minemachi, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, 321-8505, Japan
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7
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Wu WT, Xu LY, Yan ZJ, Bi N, Cheng CY, Yang F, Yang WJ, Yang JS. Identification and characterization of the Doublesex gene and its mRNA isoforms in the brine shrimp Artemia franciscana. Biochem J 2023; 480:385-401. [PMID: 36852878 DOI: 10.1042/bcj20220495] [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: 10/05/2022] [Revised: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 03/01/2023]
Abstract
Doublesex (DSX) proteins are members of the Doublesex/mab-3-related (DMRT) protein family and play crucial roles in sex determination and differentiation among the animal kingdom. In the present study, we identified two Doublesex (Dsx)-like mRNA isoforms in the brine shrimp Artemia franciscana (Kellogg 1906), which are generated by the combination of alternative promoters, alternative splicing and alternative polyadenylation. The two transcripts exhibited sex-biased enrichment, which we termed AfrDsxM and AfrDsxF. They share a common region which encodes an identical N-terminal DNA-binding (DM) domain. RT-qPCR analyses showed that AfrDsxM is dominantly expressed in male Artemia while AfrDsxF is specifically expressed in females. Expression levels of both isoforms increased along with the developmental stages of their respective sexes. RNA interference with dsRNA showed that the knockdown of AfrDsxM in male larvae led to the appearance of female traits including an ovary-like structure in the original male reproductive system and an elevated expression of vitellogenin. However, silencing of AfrDsxF induced no clear phenotypic change in female Artemia. These results indicated that the male AfrDSXM may act as inhibiting regulator upon the default female developmental mode in Artemia. Furthermore, electrophoretic mobility shift assay analyses revealed that the unique DM domain of AfrDSXs can specifically bind to promoter segments of potential downstream target genes like AfrVtg. These data show that AfrDSXs play crucial roles in regulating sexual development in Artemia, and further provide insight into the evolution of sex determination/differentiation in sexual organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen-Tao Wu
- College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Lian-Ying Xu
- College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Zhi-Jun Yan
- College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Ning Bi
- College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Cai-Yuan Cheng
- College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Fan Yang
- College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Wei-Jun Yang
- College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jin-Shu Yang
- College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
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8
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Suzuki Y, Yamada T, Suzuki MG. In Vitro Comparison of Sex-Specific Splicing Efficiencies of fem Pre-mRNA under Monoallelic and Heteroallelic Conditions of csd, a Master Sex-Determining Gene in the Honeybee. J Dev Biol 2023; 11:jdb11010010. [PMID: 36976099 PMCID: PMC10057164 DOI: 10.3390/jdb11010010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2023] [Revised: 03/05/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The sexual fate of honeybees is determined by the complementary sex determination (CSD) model: heterozygosity at a single locus (the CSD locus) determines femaleness, while hemizygosity or homozygosity at the CSD locus determines maleness. The csd gene encodes a splicing factor that regulates sex-specific splicing of the downstream target gene feminizer (fem), which is required for femaleness. The female mode of fem splicing occurs only when csd is present in the heteroallelic condition. To gain insights into how Csd proteins are only activated under the heterozygous allelic composition, we developed an in vitro assay system to evaluate the activity of Csd proteins. Consistent with the CSD model, the co-expression of two csd alleles, both of which lack splicing activity under the single-allele condition, restored the splicing activity that governs the female mode of fem splicing. RNA immunoprecipitation quantitative PCR analyses demonstrated that the CSD protein was specifically enriched in several exonic regions in the fem pre-mRNA, and enrichment in exons 3a and 5 was significantly greater under the heterozygous allelic composition than the single-allelic condition. However, in most cases csd expression under the monoallelic condition was capable of inducing the female mode of fem splicing contrary to the conventional CSD model. In contrast, repression of the male mode of fem splicing was predominant under heteroallelic conditions. These results were reproduced by real-time PCR of endogenous fem expression in female and male pupae. These findings strongly suggest that the heteroallelic composition of csd may be more important for the repression of the male splicing mode than for the induction of the female splicing mode of the fem gene.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yukihiro Suzuki
- INTERSTELLAR Inc., 301 Unico A, 3-4 Nisshin-cho, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki 210-0024, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Takafumi Yamada
- YAMADA-KUN’S Bee Farm, 95 Ochino, Mugegawa, Seki 501-2602, Gifu, Japan
| | - Masataka G. Suzuki
- Division of Biological Sciences, Department of Integrated Biosciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 302 Bioscience-Bldg, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa 277-8562, Chiba, Japan
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +81-4-7136-3694
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9
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Laslo M, Just J, Angelini DR. Theme and variation in the evolution of insect sex determination. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY. PART B, MOLECULAR AND DEVELOPMENTAL EVOLUTION 2023; 340:162-181. [PMID: 35239250 PMCID: PMC10078687 DOI: 10.1002/jez.b.23125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2021] [Revised: 11/24/2021] [Accepted: 01/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
The development of dimorphic adult sexes is a critical process for most animals, one that is subject to intense selection. Work in vertebrate and insect model species has revealed that sex determination mechanisms vary widely among animal groups. However, this variation is not uniform, with a limited number of conserved factors. Therefore, sex determination offers an excellent context to consider themes and variations in gene network evolution. Here we review the literature describing sex determination in diverse insects. We have screened public genomic sequence databases for orthologs and duplicates of 25 genes involved in insect sex determination, identifying patterns of presence and absence. These genes and a 3.5 reference set of 43 others were used to infer phylogenies and compared to accepted organismal relationships to examine patterns of congruence and divergence. The function of candidate genes for roles in sex determination (virilizer, female-lethal-2-d, transformer-2) and sex chromosome dosage compensation (male specific lethal-1, msl-2, msl-3) were tested using RNA interference in the milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus. None of these candidate genes exhibited conserved roles in these processes. Amidst this variation we wish to highlight the following themes for the evolution of sex determination: (1) Unique features within taxa influence network evolution. (2) Their position in the network influences a component's evolution. Our analyses also suggest an inverse association of protein sequence conservation with functional conservation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mara Laslo
- Department of Cell Biology, Curriculum Fellows ProgramHarvard Medical School25 Shattuck StBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Josefine Just
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary BiologyHarvard University26 Oxford StCambridgeMassachusettsUSA
- Department of BiologyColby College5734 Mayflower Hill DrWatervilleMaineUSA
| | - David R. Angelini
- Department of BiologyColby College5734 Mayflower Hill DrWatervilleMaineUSA
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10
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Just J, Laslo M, Lee YJ, Yarnell M, Zhang Z, Angelini DR. Distinct developmental mechanisms influence sexual dimorphisms in the milkweed bug Oncopeltus fasciatus. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20222083. [PMID: 36722087 PMCID: PMC9890105 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.2083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2022] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Sexual dimorphism is common in animals. The most complete model of sex determination comes from Drosophila melanogaster, where the relative dosage of autosomes and X chromosomes leads indirectly to sex-specific transcripts of doublesex (dsx). Female Dsx interacts with a mediator complex protein encoded by intersex (ix) to activate female development. In males, the transcription factor encoded by fruitless (fru) promotes male-specific behaviour. The genetics of sex determination have been examined in a small number of other insects, yet several questions remain about the plesiomorphic state. Is dsx required for female and male development? Is fru conserved in male behaviour or morphology? Are other components such as ix functionally conserved? To address these questions, we report expression and functional tests of dsx, ix and fru in the hemipteran Oncopeltus fasciatus, characterizing three sexual dimorphisms. dsx prevents ix phenotypes in all sexes and dimorphic traits in the milkweed bug. ix and fru are expressed across the body, in females and males. fru and ix also affect the genitalia of both sexes, but have effects limited to different dimorphic structures in different sexes. These results reveal roles for ix and fru distinct from other insects, and demonstrate distinct development mechanisms in different sexually dimorphic structures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Josefine Just
- Department of Biology, Colby College, 5700 Mayflower Hill, Waterville, ME 04901, USA
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, 16 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Mara Laslo
- Curriculum Fellows Program, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Ye Jin Lee
- Department of Biology, Colby College, 5700 Mayflower Hill, Waterville, ME 04901, USA
| | - Michael Yarnell
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, 13123 East 16th Avenue, B065, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Zhuofan Zhang
- School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 777 Atlantic Drive, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - David R. Angelini
- Department of Biology, Colby College, 5700 Mayflower Hill, Waterville, ME 04901, USA
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11
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Saccone G. A history of the genetic and molecular identification of genes and their functions controlling insect sex determination. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2022; 151:103873. [PMID: 36400424 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2022.103873] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2022] [Revised: 11/01/2022] [Accepted: 11/02/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The genetics of the sex determination regulatory cascade in Drosophila melanogaster has a fascinating history, interlinked with the foundation of the Genetics discipline itself. The discovery that alternative splicing rather than differential transcription is the molecular mechanism underlying the upstream control of sex differences in the Drosophila model system was surprising. This notion is now fully integrated into the scientific canon, appearing in many genetics textbooks and online education resources. In the last three decades, it was a key reference point for starting evolutionary studies in other insect species by using homology-based approaches. This review will introduce a very brief history of Drosophila genetics. It will describe the genetic and molecular approaches applied for the identifying and cloning key genes involved in sex determination in Drosophila and in many other insect species. These comparative analyses led to supporting the idea that sex-determining pathways have evolved mainly by recruiting different upstream signals/genes while maintaining widely conserved intermediate and downstream regulatory genes. The review also provides examples of the link between technological advances and research achievements, to stimulate reflections on how science is produced. It aims to hopefully strengthen the related historical and conceptual knowledge of general readers of other disciplines and of younger geneticists, often focused on the latest technical-molecular approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giuseppe Saccone
- Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Via Cinthia 26, 80126, Naples, Italy.
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12
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Han C, Peng Q, Su X, Xing L, Ji X, Pan Y. A male-specific doublesex isoform reveals an evolutionary pathway of sexual development via distinct alternative splicing mechanisms. Commun Biol 2022; 5:728. [PMID: 35869175 PMCID: PMC9307624 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03664-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2022] [Accepted: 06/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The doublesex/mab-3 related transcription factor (Dmrt) genes regulate sexual development in metazoans. Studies of the doublesex (dsx) gene in insects, in particular Drosophila melanogaster, reveal that alternative splicing of dsx generates sex-specific Dsx isoforms underlying sexual differentiation. Such a splicing-based mechanism underlying sex-specific Dmrt function is thought to be evolved from a transcription-based mechanism used in non-insect species, but how such transition occurs during evolution is not known. Here we identified a male-specific dsx transcript (dsxM2) through intron retention (IR), in addition to previously identified dsxM and dsxF transcripts through alternative polyadenylation (APA) with mutually exclusive exons. We found that DsxM2 had similarly masculinizing function as DsxM. We also found that the IR-based mechanism generating sex-specific dsx transcripts was conserved from flies to cockroaches. Further analysis of these dsx transcripts suggested an evolutionary pathway from sexually monomorphic to sex-specific dsx via the sequential use of IR-based and APA-based alternative splicing. An ancestral male-specific doublesex isoform, dsxM2, is identified via intron retention, with a masculinizing function weaker than the modern dsxM
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13
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Gao JJ, Barmina O, Thompson A, Kim BY, Suvorov A, Tanaka K, Watabe H, Toda MJ, Chen JM, Katoh TK, Kopp A. Secondary reversion to sexual monomorphism associated with tissue-specific loss of doublesex expression. Evolution 2022; 76:2089-2104. [PMID: 35841603 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2022] [Revised: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Animal evolution is characterized by frequent turnover of sexually dimorphic traits-new sex-specific characters are gained, and some ancestral sex-specific characters are lost, in many lineages. In insects, sexual differentiation is predominantly cell autonomous and depends on the expression of the doublesex (dsx) transcription factor. In most cases, cells that transcribe dsx have the potential to undergo sex-specific differentiation, while those that lack dsx expression do not. Consistent with this mode of development, comparative research has shown that the origin of new sex-specific traits can be associated with the origin of new spatial domains of dsx expression. In this report, we examine the opposite situation-a secondary loss of the sex comb, a male-specific grasping structure that develops on the front legs of some drosophilid species. We show that while the origin of the sex comb is linked to an evolutionary gain of dsx expression in the leg, sex comb loss in a newly identified species of Lordiphosa (Drosophilidae) is associated with a secondary loss of dsx expression. We discuss how the developmental control of sexual dimorphism affects the mechanisms by which sex-specific traits can evolve.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian-Jun Gao
- Yunnan Key Laboratory of Plant Reproductive Adaptation and Evolutionary Ecology, Yunnan University, China.,State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Bioresources in Yunnan, Yunnan University, China
| | - Olga Barmina
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Ammon Thompson
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Bernard Y Kim
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Anton Suvorov
- Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
| | - Kohtaro Tanaka
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Hideaki Watabe
- The Hokkaido University Museum, Kita-10, Nishi-8, Kitaku, Sapporo, 060-0810, Japan
| | - Masanori J Toda
- The Hokkaido University Museum, Kita-10, Nishi-8, Kitaku, Sapporo, 060-0810, Japan
| | - Ji-Min Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Bioresources in Yunnan, Yunnan University, China
| | - Takehiro K Katoh
- Yunnan Key Laboratory of Plant Reproductive Adaptation and Evolutionary Ecology, Yunnan University, China
| | - Artyom Kopp
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
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14
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Singh Brar G, Singh S, Nath Shukla J, Kumar V, Emyr Davies TG, Kaur G, Pandher S, Kaur R. doublesex homolog is sex-specifically spliced and governs the sexual differentiation process in the whitefly Bemisia tabaci biotype AsiaII-1. Gene 2022; 850:146929. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2022.146929] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2021] [Revised: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 09/26/2022] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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15
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Chikami Y, Okuno M, Toyoda A, Itoh T, Niimi T. Evolutionary history of sexual differentiation mechanism in insects. Mol Biol Evol 2022; 39:6618292. [PMID: 35820410 PMCID: PMC9290531 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msac145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Alternative splicing underpins functional diversity in proteins and the complexity and diversity of eukaryotes. An example is the doublesex gene, the key transcriptional factor in arthropod sexual differentiation. doublesex is controlled by sex-specific splicing and promotes both male and female differentiation in holometabolan insects, whereas in hemimetabolan species, doublesex has sex-specific isoforms but is not required for female differentiation. How doublesex evolved to be essential for female development remains largely unknown. Here, we investigate ancestral states of doublesex using Thermobia domestica belonging to Zygentoma, the sister group of Pterygota, that is, winged insects. We find that, in T. domestica, doublesex expresses sex-specific isoforms but is only necessary for male differentiation of sexual morphology. This result supports the hypothesis that doublesex initially promoted male differentiation during insect evolution. However, T. domestica doublesex has a short female-specific region and upregulates the expression of vitellogenin homologs in females, suggesting that doublesex may already play some role in female morphogenesis of the common ancestor of Pterygota. Reconstruction of the ancestral sequence and prediction of protein structures show that the female-specific isoform of doublesex has an extended C-terminal disordered region in holometabolan insects but not in nonholometabolan species. We propose that doublesex acquired its function in female morphogenesis through a change in the protein motif structure rather than the emergence of the female-specific exon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasuhiko Chikami
- Division of Evolutionary Developmental Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, 38 Nishigonaka, Myodaiji, Okazaki, Aichi, 444-8585, Japan.,Department of Basic Biology, School of Life Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, 38 Nishigonaka, Myodaiji, Okazaki, Aichi, 444-8585, Japan
| | - Miki Okuno
- Division of Microbiology, Department of Infectious Medicine, School of Medicine, Kurume University, 67 Asahi-machi, Kurume, Fukuoka, 830-0011, Japan
| | - Atsushi Toyoda
- Comparative Genomics Laboratory, National Institute of Genetics, 1111 Yata, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan.,Advanced Genomics Center, National Institute of Genetics, 1111 Yata, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan
| | - Takehiko Itoh
- School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1 Ookayama, Meguro, Tokyo, 152-8550, Japan
| | - Teruyuki Niimi
- Division of Evolutionary Developmental Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, 38 Nishigonaka, Myodaiji, Okazaki, Aichi, 444-8585, Japan.,Department of Basic Biology, School of Life Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, 38 Nishigonaka, Myodaiji, Okazaki, Aichi, 444-8585, Japan
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16
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Belles X. The sex of scents. Nat Ecol Evol 2022; 6:1058-1059. [PMID: 35788709 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-022-01818-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xavier Belles
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Spain.
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17
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Chen N, Liu YJ, Fan YL, Pei XJ, Yang Y, Liao MT, Zhong J, Li N, Liu TX, Wang G, Pan Y, Schal C, Li S. A single gene integrates sex and hormone regulators into sexual attractiveness. Nat Ecol Evol 2022; 6:1180-1190. [PMID: 35788705 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-022-01808-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2022] [Accepted: 05/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Sex differentiation and hormones are essential for the development of sexual signals in animals, and the regulation of sexual signals involves complex gene networks. However, it is unknown whether a core gene is able to connect the upstream regulators for controlling sexual signal outputs and behavioural consequences. Here, we identify a single gene that integrates both sex differentiation and hormone signalling with sexual attractiveness in an insect model. CYP4PC1 in the German cockroach, Blattella germanica, controls the rate-limiting step in producing female-specific contact sex pheromone (CSP) that stimulates male courtship. As revealed by behavioural, biochemical, molecular, genetic and bioinformatic approaches, in sexually mature females, CYP4PC1 expression and CSP production are coordinately induced by sex differentiation genes and juvenile hormone (JH) signalling. In adult males, direct inhibition of CYP4PC1 expression by doublesexM binding in gene promoter and lack of the gonadotropic hormone JH prevent CSP production, thus avoiding male-male attraction. By manipulating the upstream regulators, we show that wild-type males prefer to court cockroaches with higher CYP4PC1 expression and CSP production in a dose-dependent manner, regardless of their sex. These findings shed light on how sex-specific and high sexual attractiveness is conferred in insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nan Chen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, and Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management on the Loess Plateau of Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China.,Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangzhou, China.,Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, China
| | - Yong-Jun Liu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yong-Liang Fan
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, and Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management on the Loess Plateau of Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China.
| | - Xiao-Jin Pei
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, and Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management on the Loess Plateau of Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China
| | - Yang Yang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ming-Tao Liao
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jiru Zhong
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Na Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, China
| | - Tong-Xian Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, and Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management on the Loess Plateau of Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China.,Laboratory of Insect Ecology and Molecular Biology, College of Plant Health and Medicine, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
| | - Guirong Wang
- Lingnan Guangdong Laboratory of Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yufeng Pan
- The Key Laboratory of Developmental Genes and Human Disease, School of Life Science and Technology, Southeast University, Nanjing, China
| | - Coby Schal
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA
| | - Sheng Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China. .,Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangzhou, China. .,Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, China.
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18
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Pacheco ID, Walling LL, Atkinson PW. Gene Editing and Genetic Control of Hemipteran Pests: Progress, Challenges and Perspectives. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022; 10:900785. [PMID: 35747496 PMCID: PMC9209771 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2022.900785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 05/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The origin of the order Hemiptera can be traced to the late Permian Period more than 230 MYA, well before the origin of flowering plants 100 MY later in during the Cretaceous period. Hemipteran species consume their liquid diets using a sucking proboscis; for phytophagous hemipterans their mouthparts (stylets) are elegant structures that enable voracious feeding from plant xylem or phloem. This adaptation has resulted in some hemipteran species becoming globally significant pests of agriculture resulting in significant annual crop losses. Due to the reliance on chemical insecticides for the control of insect pests in agricultural settings, many hemipteran pests have evolved resistance to insecticides resulting in an urgent need to develop new, species-specific and environmentally friendly methods of pest control. The rapid advances in CRISPR/Cas9 technologies in model insects such as Drosophila melanogaster, Tribolium castaneum, Bombyx mori, and Aedes aegypti has spurred a new round of innovative genetic control strategies in the Diptera and Lepidoptera and an increased interest in assessing genetic control technologies for the Hemiptera. Genetic control approaches in the Hemiptera have, to date, been largely overlooked due to the problems of introducing genetic material into the germline of these insects. The high frequency of CRISPR-mediated mutagenesis in model insect species suggest that, if the delivery problem for Hemiptera could be solved, then gene editing in the Hemiptera might be quickly achieved. Significant advances in CRISPR/Cas9 editing have been realized in nine species of Hemiptera over the past 4 years. Here we review progress in the Hemiptera and discuss the challenges and opportunities for extending contemporary genetic control strategies into species in this agriculturally important insect orderr.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inaiara D. Pacheco
- Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
| | - Linda L. Walling
- Department of Botany & Plant Sciences, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
- Institute for Integrative Genome Biology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
| | - Peter W. Atkinson
- Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
- Institute for Integrative Genome Biology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
- *Correspondence: Peter W. Atkinson,
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19
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Abstract
Insects have evolved highly diverse genetic sex-determination mechanisms and a relatively balanced male to female sex ratio is generally expected. However, selection may shift the optimal sex ratio while meiotic drive and endosymbiont manipulation can result in sex ratio distortion (SRD). Recent advances in sex chromosome genomics and CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing brought significant insights into the molecular regulators of sex determination in an increasing number of insects and provided new ways to engineer SRD. We review these advances and discuss both naturally occurring and engineered SRD in the context of the Anthropocene. We emphasize SRD-mediated biological control of insects to help improve One Health, sustain agriculture, and conserve endangered species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Austin Compton
- Department of Biochemistry, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
- Fralin Life Sciences Institute, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
| | - Zhijian Tu
- Department of Biochemistry, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
- Fralin Life Sciences Institute, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
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20
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Dynamics of sex-biased gene expression during development in the stick insect Timema californicum. Heredity (Edinb) 2022; 129:113-122. [PMID: 35581477 PMCID: PMC9338061 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-022-00536-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2022] [Revised: 04/04/2022] [Accepted: 04/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Sexually dimorphic phenotypes are thought to arise primarily from sex-biased gene expression during development. Major changes in developmental strategies, such as the shift from hemimetabolous to holometabolous development, are therefore expected to have profound consequences for the dynamics of sex-biased gene expression. However, no studies have previously examined sex-biased gene expression during development in hemimetabolous insects, precluding comparisons between developmental strategies. Here we characterized sex-biased gene expression at three developmental stages in a hemimetabolous stick insect (Timema californicum): hatchlings, juveniles, and adults. As expected, the proportion of sex-biased genes gradually increased during development, mirroring the gradual increase of phenotypic sexual dimorphism. Sex-biased genes identified at early developmental stages were generally consistently male- or female-biased at later stages, suggesting their importance in sexual differentiation. Additionally, we compared the dynamics of sex-biased gene expression during development in T. californicum to those of the holometabolous fly Drosophila melanogaster by reanalyzing publicly available RNA-seq data from third instar larval, pupal and adult stages. In D. melanogaster, 84% of genes were sex-biased at the adult stage (compared to only 20% in T. californicum), and sex-biased gene expression increased abruptly at the adult stage when morphological sexual dimorphism is manifested. Our findings are consistent with the prediction that the dynamics of sex-biased gene expression during development differ extensively between holometabolous and hemimetabolous insect species.
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21
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Wada-Katsumata A, Hatano E, McPherson S, Silverman J, Schal C. Rapid evolution of an adaptive taste polymorphism disrupts courtship behavior. Commun Biol 2022; 5:450. [PMID: 35551501 PMCID: PMC9098494 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03415-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The evolution of adaptive behavior often requires changes in sensory systems. However, rapid adaptive changes in sensory traits can adversely affect other fitness-related behaviors. In the German cockroach, a gustatory polymorphism, ‘glucose-aversion (GA)’, supports greater survivorship under selection with glucose-containing insecticide baits and promotes the evolution of behavioral resistance. Yet, sugars are prominent components of the male’s nuptial gift and play an essential role in courtship. Behavioral and chemical analyses revealed that the saliva of GA females rapidly degrades nuptial gift sugars into glucose, and the inversion of a tasty nuptial gift to an aversive stimulus often causes GA females to reject courting males. Thus, the rapid emergence of an adaptive change in the gustatory system supports foraging, but it interferes with courtship. The trade-off between natural and sexual selection under human-imposed selection can lead to directional selection on courtship behavior that favors the GA genotype. A study of German cockroaches with glucose-aversion reveals how this adaptation to avoid glucose-containing insecticides causes females to reject courting males, because their salivary enzymes degrade sugars in the male’s nuptial gift into glucose.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayako Wada-Katsumata
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology and W.M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27695, USA.
| | - Eduardo Hatano
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology and W.M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27695, USA
| | - Samantha McPherson
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology and W.M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27695, USA
| | - Jules Silverman
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology and W.M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27695, USA
| | - Coby Schal
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology and W.M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27695, USA.
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22
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Sex-specific regulation of development, growth and metabolism. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2022; 138:117-127. [PMID: 35469676 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2022.04.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2021] [Revised: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Adult females and males of most species differ in many aspects of their morphology, physiology and behavior, in response to sex-specific selective pressures that maximize fitness. While we have an increasingly good understanding of the genetic mechanisms that initiate these differences, the sex-specific developmental trajectories that generate them are much less well understood. Here we review recent advances in the sex-specific regulation of development focusing on two models where this development is increasingly well understood: Sexual dimorphism of body size in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster and sexual dimorphism of horns in the horned beetle Onthophagus taurus. Because growth and development are also supported by metabolism, the regulation of sex-specific metabolism during and after development is an important aspect of the generation of female and male phenotypes. Hitherto, the study of sex-specific development has largely been independent of the study of sex-specific metabolism. Nevertheless, as we discuss in this review, recent research has begun to reveal considerable overlap in the cellular and physiological mechanisms that regulate sex-specific development and metabolism.
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23
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Torres-Méndez A, Pop S, Bonnal S, Almudi I, Avola A, Roberts RJV, Paolantoni C, Alcaina-Caro A, Martín-Anduaga A, Haussmann IU, Morin V, Casares F, Soller M, Kadener S, Roignant JY, Prieto-Godino L, Irimia M. Parallel evolution of a splicing program controlling neuronal excitability in flies and mammals. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabk0445. [PMID: 35089784 PMCID: PMC8797185 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abk0445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Accepted: 12/08/2021] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Alternative splicing increases neuronal transcriptomic complexity throughout animal phylogeny. To delve into the mechanisms controlling the assembly and evolution of this regulatory layer, we characterized the neuronal microexon program in Drosophila and compared it with that of mammals. In nonvertebrate bilaterians, this splicing program is restricted to neurons by the posttranscriptional processing of the enhancer of microexons (eMIC) domain in Srrm234. In Drosophila, this processing is dependent on regulation by Elav/Fne. eMIC deficiency or misexpression leads to widespread neurological alterations largely emerging from impaired neuronal activity, as revealed by a combination of neuronal imaging experiments and cell type-specific rescues. These defects are associated with the genome-wide skipping of short neural exons, which are strongly enriched in ion channels. We found no overlap of eMIC-regulated exons between flies and mice, illustrating how ancient posttranscriptional programs can evolve independently in different phyla to affect distinct cellular modules while maintaining cell-type specificity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Torres-Méndez
- Centre for Genomic Regulation, Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST), Barcelona 08003, Spain
- Francis Crick Institute, London, UK
| | | | - Sophie Bonnal
- Centre for Genomic Regulation, Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST), Barcelona 08003, Spain
| | - Isabel Almudi
- Centro Andaluz de Biología del Desarrollo (CABD), CSIC-Universidad Pablo de Olavide-Junta de Andalucía, Seville, Spain
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics and Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | | | - Chiara Paolantoni
- Center for Integrative Genomics, Génopode Building, Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Ana Alcaina-Caro
- Centro Andaluz de Biología del Desarrollo (CABD), CSIC-Universidad Pablo de Olavide-Junta de Andalucía, Seville, Spain
| | | | - Irmgard U. Haussmann
- Department of Life Science, School of Health Sciences, Birmingham City University, Birmingham B5 3TN, UK
| | - Violeta Morin
- Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB), Mainz, Germany
| | - Fernando Casares
- Centro Andaluz de Biología del Desarrollo (CABD), CSIC-Universidad Pablo de Olavide-Junta de Andalucía, Seville, Spain
| | - Matthias Soller
- School of Biosciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
- Birmingham Centre for Genome Biology, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
| | | | - Jean-Yves Roignant
- Center for Integrative Genomics, Génopode Building, Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
- Institute of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz, Staudingerweg 5, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Manuel Irimia
- Centre for Genomic Regulation, Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST), Barcelona 08003, Spain
- Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona 08003, Spain
- ICREA, Barcelona, Spain
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24
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Siddall A, Harvey-Samuel T, Chapman T, Leftwich PT. Manipulating Insect Sex Determination Pathways for Genetic Pest Management: Opportunities and Challenges. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022; 10:867851. [PMID: 35837548 PMCID: PMC9274970 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2022.867851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/01/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Sex determination pathways in insects are generally characterised by an upstream primary signal, which is highly variable across species, and that regulates the splicing of a suite of downstream but highly-conserved genes (transformer, doublesex and fruitless). In turn, these downstream genes then regulate the expression of sex-specific characteristics in males and females. Identification of sex determination pathways has and continues to be, a critical component of insect population suppression technologies. For example, "first-generation" transgenic technologies such as fsRIDL (Female-Specific Release of Insects carrying Dominant Lethals) enabled efficient selective removal of females from a target population as a significant improvement on the sterile insect technique (SIT). Second-generation technologies such as CRISPR/Cas9 homing gene drives and precision-guided SIT (pgSIT) have used gene editing technologies to manipulate sex determination genes in vivo. The development of future, third-generation control technologies, such as Y-linked drives, (female to male) sex-reversal, or X-shredding, will require additional knowledge of aspects of sexual development, including a deeper understanding of the nature of primary signals and dosage compensation. This review shows how knowledge of sex determination in target pest species is fundamental to all phases of the development of control technologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex Siddall
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom
| | - Tim Harvey-Samuel
- Arthropod Genetics, The Pirbright Institute, Pirbright, United Kingdom
| | - Tracey Chapman
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom
| | - Philip T Leftwich
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom
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25
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Jin B, Zhao Y, Dong Y, Liu P, Sun Y, Li X, Zhang X, Chen XG, Gu J. Alternative splicing patterns of doublesex reveal a missing link between Nix and doublesex in the sex determination cascade of Aedes albopictus. INSECT SCIENCE 2021; 28:1601-1620. [PMID: 33179439 DOI: 10.1111/1744-7917.12886] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2020] [Revised: 10/26/2020] [Accepted: 10/28/2020] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
Sexual development in insects is regulated by a complicated hierarchical cascade of sex determination. The primary signals are diverse, whereas the central nexus doublesex (dsx) gene is relatively conserved within the pathway. Aedes (Stegomyia) albopictus is an important vector with an extensive worldwide distribution. We previously reported that Ae. albopictus dsx (Aalbdsx) yields one male- (AalbdsxM ) and three female-specific isoforms (AalbdsxF1-3 ); however, the spatiotemporal expression profiles and mechanisms regulating sex-specific alternative splicing require further investigation. In this study, we demonstrated that the AalbdsxM messenger RNA (mRNA) represents the default pattern when analyzed in human foreskin fibroblasts and HeLa cells. We combined reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction with RNA immunoprecipitation using specific antibodies against tagged Ae. albopictus male-determining factor AalNix and confirmed that AalNix indirectly regulates dsx pre-mRNA and regulates its alternative splicing. During the early embryo stage (0-2 and 4-8 h), maternal dsxF and default splicing dsxM were detected in both sexes; the expression of dsxM then decreased until sufficient AalNix transcripts accumulated in male embryos at 20-24 h. These findings suggest that one or more potential dsx splicing enhancers can shift dsxM to dsxF in both sexes; however, the presence of Nix influences the function of this unknown splicing enhancer and ultimately leads to the formation of dsxM in males. Finally, our results provide important insight into the regulatory mechanism of dsx alternative splicing in the mosquito.
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Affiliation(s)
- Binbin Jin
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China
| | - Yijie Zhao
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China
| | - Yunqiao Dong
- Reproductive Medical Centre of Guangdong Women and Children Hospital, Guangzhou, 511442, China
| | - Peiwen Liu
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China
| | - Yan Sun
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China
| | - Xiaocong Li
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China
| | - Xin Zhang
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China
| | - Xiao-Guang Chen
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China
| | - Jinbao Gu
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China
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26
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Zhuo JC, Zhang HH, Hu QL, Zhang JL, Lu JB, Li HJ, Xie YC, Wang WW, Zhang Y, Wang HQ, Huang HJ, Lu G, Chen JP, Li JM, Tu ZJ, Zhang CX. A feminizing switch in a hemimetabolous insect. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2021; 7:eabf9237. [PMID: 34826246 PMCID: PMC8626073 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abf9237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 10/06/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The mechanism of sex determination remains poorly understood in hemimetabolous insects. Here, in the brown planthopper (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens, a hemipteran rice pest, we identified a feminizing switch or a female determiner (Nlfmd) that encodes a serine/arginine-rich protein. Knockdown of Nlfmd in female nymphs resulted in masculinization of both the somatic morphology and doublesex splicing. The female-specific isoform of Nlfmd, Nlfmd-F, is maternally deposited and zygotically transcribed. Depletion of Nlfmd by maternal RNAi or CRISPR-Cas9 resulted in female-specific embryonic lethality. Knockdown of an hnRNP40 family gene named female determiner 2 (Nlfmd2) also conferred masculinization. In vitro experiments showed that an Nlfmd2 isoform, NlFMD2340, bound the RAAGAA repeat motif in the Nldsx pre-mRNA and formed a protein complex with NlFMD-F to modulate Nldsx splicing, suggesting that NlFMD2 may function as an RNA binding partner of the feminizing switch NlFMD. Our results provide novel insights into the diverse mechanisms of insect sex determination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ji-Chong Zhuo
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
- Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Hou-Hong Zhang
- Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Qing-Ling Hu
- Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Jin-Li Zhang
- Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Jia-Bao Lu
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
- Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Han-Jing Li
- Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Yu-Cheng Xie
- Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Wei-Wei Wang
- Institute of Biochemistry, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Yan Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
| | - Hai-Qiang Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
| | - Hai-Jian Huang
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
| | - Gang Lu
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
| | - Jian-Ping Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
| | - Jun-Min Li
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
| | - Zhi-Jian Tu
- Department of Biochemistry, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Chuan-Xi Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of Ministry of Agriculture and Zhejiang Province, Institute of Plant Virology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
- Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
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27
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Zhu S, Liu Y, Liao M, Yang Y, Bai Y, Li N, Li S, Luan Y, Chen N. Evaluation of Reference Genes for Transcriptional Profiling in Two Cockroach Models. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:genes12121880. [PMID: 34946836 PMCID: PMC8701133 DOI: 10.3390/genes12121880] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2021] [Revised: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/24/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
The German cockroach, Blattella germanica, and the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana are the most common and synanthropic household pests of interest to public health. While they have increasingly served as model systems in hemimetabolous insects for studying many biological issues, there is still a lack of stable reference gene evaluation for reliable quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) outputs and functional genomics. Here, we evaluated the expression variation of common insect reference genes, including the historically used actin, across various tissues and developmental stages, and also under experimental treatment conditions in these two species by using three individual algorithms (geNorm, BestKeeper, and NormFinder) and a comprehensive program (RefFinder). RPL32 in B. germanica and EF1α in P. americana showed the overall lowest variation among all examined samples. Based on the stability rankings by RefFinder, the optimal but varied reference genes under specific conditions were selected for qPCR normalization. In addition, the combination of RPL32 and EF1α was recommended for all the tested tissues and stages in B. germanica, whereas the combination of multiple reference genes was unfavorable in P. americana. This study provides a condition-specific resource of reference gene selection for accurate gene expression profiling and facilitating functional genomics in these two important cockroaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shen Zhu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China; (S.Z.); (Y.L.); (M.L.); (Y.Y.); (Y.B.); (N.L.); (S.L.); (Y.L.)
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou 514000, China
| | - Yongjun Liu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China; (S.Z.); (Y.L.); (M.L.); (Y.Y.); (Y.B.); (N.L.); (S.L.); (Y.L.)
| | - Mingtao Liao
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China; (S.Z.); (Y.L.); (M.L.); (Y.Y.); (Y.B.); (N.L.); (S.L.); (Y.L.)
| | - Yang Yang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China; (S.Z.); (Y.L.); (M.L.); (Y.Y.); (Y.B.); (N.L.); (S.L.); (Y.L.)
| | - Yu Bai
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China; (S.Z.); (Y.L.); (M.L.); (Y.Y.); (Y.B.); (N.L.); (S.L.); (Y.L.)
| | - Na Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China; (S.Z.); (Y.L.); (M.L.); (Y.Y.); (Y.B.); (N.L.); (S.L.); (Y.L.)
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou 514000, China
| | - Sheng Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China; (S.Z.); (Y.L.); (M.L.); (Y.Y.); (Y.B.); (N.L.); (S.L.); (Y.L.)
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou 514000, China
| | - Yunxia Luan
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China; (S.Z.); (Y.L.); (M.L.); (Y.Y.); (Y.B.); (N.L.); (S.L.); (Y.L.)
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou 514000, China
| | - Nan Chen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China; (S.Z.); (Y.L.); (M.L.); (Y.Y.); (Y.B.); (N.L.); (S.L.); (Y.L.)
- Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou 514000, China
- Correspondence:
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28
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Mine S, Sumitani M, Aoki F, Hatakeyama M, Suzuki MG. Effects of Functional Depletion of Doublesex on Male Development in the Sawfly, Athalia rosae. INSECTS 2021; 12:insects12100849. [PMID: 34680618 PMCID: PMC8538284 DOI: 10.3390/insects12100849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2021] [Revised: 09/18/2021] [Accepted: 09/20/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Simple Summary The sawfly, Athalia rosae, exploits a haplodiploid mode of reproduction, in which fertilized eggs develop into diploid females, whereas unfertilized eggs parthenogenetically develop into haploid males. The doublesex (dsx) gene is a well-conserved transcription factor that regulates sexual differentiation in insects. In the present study, we knocked down the A. rosae ortholog of dsx (Ardsx) during several developmental stages with repeated double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) injections. As a result, knockdown of Ardsx in haploid males caused almost complete male-to-female sex reversal, but the resulting eggs were infertile. The same knockdown approach using diploid males caused complete male-to-female sex reversal; they were able to produce fertile eggs and exhibited female behaviors. The same RNAi treatment did not affect female differentiation. These results demonstrated that dsx in the sawfly is essential for male development and its depletion caused complete male-to-female sex reversal. This is the first demonstration of functional depletion of dsx not causing intersexuality but inducing total sex reversal in males instead. Abstract The doublesex (dsx) gene, which encodes a transcription factor, regulates sexual differentiation in insects. Sex-specific splicing of dsx occurs to yield male- and female-specific isoforms, which promote male and female development, respectively. Thus, functional disruption of dsx leads to an intersexual phenotype in both sexes. We previously identified a dsx ortholog in the sawfly, Athalia rosae. Similar to dsx in other insects, dsx in the sawfly yields different isoforms in males and females as a result of alternative splicing. The sawfly exploits a haplodiploid mode of reproduction, in which fertilized eggs develop into diploid females, whereas unfertilized eggs parthenogenetically develop into haploid males. In the present study, we knocked down the A. rosae ortholog of dsx (Ardsx) during several developmental stages with repeated double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) injections. Knockdown of Ardsx via parental RNA interference (RNAi), which enables knockdown of genes in offspring embryos, led to a lack of internal and external genitalia in haploid male progeny. Additional injection of dsRNA targeting Ardsx in these animals caused almost complete male-to-female sex reversal, but the resulting eggs were infertile. Notably, the same knockdown approach using diploid males obtained by sib-crossing caused complete male-to-female sex reversal; they were morphologically and behaviorally females. The same RNAi treatment did not affect female differentiation. These results indicate that dsx in the sawfly is essential for male development and its depletion caused complete male-to-female sex reversal. This is the first demonstration of functional depletion of dsx not causing intersexuality but inducing total sex reversal in males instead.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shotaro Mine
- Department of Biosciences, Nihon University, 3-25-40 Sakurajosui, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8550, Japan;
| | - Megumi Sumitani
- Division of Biotechnology, Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, NARO, Owashi, Tsukuba 305-8634, Japan;
| | - Fugaku Aoki
- Department of Integrated Biosciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa 277-8562, Japan;
| | - Masatsugu Hatakeyama
- Division of Applied Genetics, Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, NARO, Owashi, Tsukuba 305-8634, Japan;
| | - Masataka G. Suzuki
- Department of Integrated Biosciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa 277-8562, Japan;
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +81-4-7136-3694
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29
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Miyazaki S, Fujiwara K, Kai K, Masuoka Y, Gotoh H, Niimi T, Hayashi Y, Shigenobu S, Maekawa K. Evolutionary transition of doublesex regulation from sex-specific splicing to male-specific transcription in termites. Sci Rep 2021; 11:15992. [PMID: 34362973 PMCID: PMC8346542 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-95423-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2021] [Accepted: 07/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The sex determination gene doublesex (dsx) encodes a transcription factor with two domains, oligomerization domain 1 (OD1) and OD2, and is present throughout insects. Sex-specific Dsx splicing isoforms regulate the transcription of target genes and trigger sex differentiation in all Holometabola examined to date. However, in some hemimetabolous insects, dsx is not spliced sexually and its sequence is less conserved. Here, to elucidate evolutionary changes in dsx in domain organisation and regulation in termites, we searched genome and/or transcriptome databases for the dsx OD1 and OD2 in seven termite species and their sister group (Cryptocercus woodroaches). Molecular phylogenetic and synteny analyses identified OD1 sequences of termites and C. punctulatus that clustered with dsx of Holometabola and regarded them as dsx orthologues. The Cryptocercus dsx orthologue containing OD2 was spliced sexually, as previously shown in other insects. However, OD2 was not found in all termite dsx orthologues. These orthologues were encoded by a single exon in three termites for which genome information is available; they were not alternatively spliced but transcribed in a male-specific manner in two examined species. Evolution of dsx regulation from sex-specific splicing to male-specific transcription may have occurred at an early stage of social evolution in termites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satoshi Miyazaki
- Graduate School of Agriculture, Tamagawa University, Machida, Tokyo, 194-8610, Japan.
| | - Kokuto Fujiwara
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, 930-8555, Japan
| | - Keima Kai
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, 930-8555, Japan
| | - Yudai Masuoka
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, 930-8555, Japan.,Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, NARO (National Agriculture and Food Research Organization), Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8634, Japan
| | - Hiroki Gotoh
- Department of Biological Science, Faculty of Science, Shizuoka University, Suruga-ku, Shizuoka, 422-8529, Japan
| | - Teruyuki Niimi
- Division of Evolutionary Developmental Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Aichi, 444-8585, Japan.,Department of Basic Biology, School of Life Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Okazaki, Aichi, 444-8585, Japan
| | - Yoshinobu Hayashi
- Department of Biology, Keio University, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 223-8521, Japan
| | - Shuji Shigenobu
- Department of Basic Biology, School of Life Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Okazaki, Aichi, 444-8585, Japan.,NIBB Research Core Facilities, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Aichi, 444-8585, Japan
| | - Kiyoto Maekawa
- Faculty of Science, Academic Assembly, University of Toyama, Gofuku, Toyama, 930-8555, Japan.
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30
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Modulation of fatty acid elongation in cockroaches sustains sexually dimorphic hydrocarbons and female attractiveness. PLoS Biol 2021; 19:e3001330. [PMID: 34314414 PMCID: PMC8315507 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001330] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Insect cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) serve as important intersexual signaling chemicals and generally show variation between the sexes, but little is known about the generation of sexually dimorphic hydrocarbons (SDHCs) in insects. In this study, we report the molecular mechanism and biological significance that underlie the generation of SDHC in the German cockroach Blattella germanica. Sexually mature females possess more C29 CHCs, especially the contact sex pheromone precursor 3,11-DimeC29. RNA interference (RNAi) screen against the fatty acid elongase family members combined with heterologous expression of the genes in yeast revealed that both BgElo12 and BgElo24 were involved in hydrocarbon (HC) production, but BgElo24 is of wide catalytic activities and is able to provide substrates for BgElo12, and only the female-enriched BgElo12 is responsible for sustaining female-specific HC profile. Repressing BgElo12 masculinized the female CHC profile, decreased contact sex pheromone level, and consequently reduced the sexual attractiveness of female cockroaches. Moreover, the asymmetric expression of BgElo12 between the sexes is modulated by sex differentiation cascade. Specifically, male-specific BgDsx represses the transcription of BgElo12 in males, while BgTra is able to remove this effect in females. Our study reveals a novel molecular mechanism responsible for the formation of SDHCs and also provide evidences on shaping of the SDHCs by sexual selection, as females use them to generate high levels of contact sex pheromone. Sexual dimorphism of body waxes is prevalent in insects; this study reveals that the sex-differentiation pathway regulates fatty acid elongation, ensuring production of the sexually dimorphic cuticular hydrocarbons needed for high levels of sex pheromone and sexual attractiveness in female cockroaches.
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31
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Whittle CA, Kulkarni A, Extavour CG. Evolutionary dynamics of sex-biased genes expressed in cricket brains and gonads. J Evol Biol 2021; 34:1188-1211. [PMID: 34114713 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2021] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Sex-biased gene expression, particularly sex-biased expression in the gonad, has been linked to rates of protein sequence evolution (nonsynonymous to synonymous substitutions, dN/dS) in animals. However, in insects, sex-biased expression studies remain centred on a few holometabolous species. Moreover, other major tissue types such as the brain remain underexplored. Here, we studied sex-biased gene expression and protein evolution in a hemimetabolous insect, the cricket Gryllus bimaculatus. We generated novel male and female RNA-seq data for two sexual tissue types, the gonad and somatic reproductive system, and for two core components of the nervous system, the brain and ventral nerve cord. From a genome-wide analysis, we report several core findings. Firstly, testis-biased genes had accelerated evolution, as compared to ovary-biased and unbiased genes, which was associated with positive selection events. Secondly, although sex-biased brain genes were much less common than for the gonad, they exhibited a striking tendency for rapid protein sequence evolution, an effect that was stronger for the female than male brain. Further, some sex-biased brain genes were linked to sexual functions and mating behaviours, which we suggest may have accelerated their evolution via sexual selection. Thirdly, a tendency for narrow cross-tissue expression breadth, suggesting low pleiotropy, was observed for sex-biased brain genes, suggesting relaxed purifying selection, which we speculate may allow enhanced freedom to evolve adaptive protein functional changes. The findings of rapid evolution of testis-biased genes and male and female-biased brain genes are discussed with respect to pleiotropy, positive selection and the mating biology of this cricket.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carrie A Whittle
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Arpita Kulkarni
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Cassandra G Extavour
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
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Rohner PT. A role for sex-determination genes in life history evolution? Doublesex mediates sexual size dimorphism in the gazelle dung beetle. J Evol Biol 2021; 34:1326-1332. [PMID: 34075658 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2021] [Revised: 04/06/2021] [Accepted: 05/09/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
An organism's fitness depends strongly on its age and size at maturation. Although the evolutionary forces acting on these critical life history traits have been heavily scrutinized, the developmental mechanisms underpinning intraspecific variation in adult size and development time remain much less well-understood. Using RNA interference, I here show that the highly conserved sex-determination gene doublesex (dsx) mediates sexual size dimorphism (SSD) in the gazelle dung beetle Digitonthophagus gazella. Because doublesex undergoes sex-specific splicing and sex-limited isoforms regulate different target genes, this suggests that dsx contributes to the resolution of intralocus sexual conflict in body size. However, these results contrast with previous studies demonstrating that dsx does not affect body size or SSD in Drosophila. This indicates that intraspecific body size variation is underlain by contrasting developmental mechanisms in different insect lineages. Furthermore, although male D. gazella have a longer development time than females, sexual bimaturism was not affected by dsx expression knockdown. In addition, and in contrast to secondary sexual morphology, dsx did not significantly affect nutritional plasticity in life history. Taken together, these findings indicate that dsx signalling contributes to intraspecific life history variation but that dsx's function in mediating sexual dimorphism in life history differs among traits and species. More generally, these findings suggest that genes ancestrally tasked with sex determination have been co-opted into the developmental regulation of life history traits and may represent an underappreciated mechanism of life history evolution.
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Takahashi M, Okude G, Futahashi R, Takahashi Y, Kawata M. The effect of the doublesex gene in body colour masculinization of the damselfly Ischnura senegalensis. Biol Lett 2021; 17:20200761. [PMID: 34102071 PMCID: PMC8187028 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2020.0761] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Odonata species display a remarkable diversity of colour patterns, including intrasexual polymorphisms. In the damselfly (Ischnura senegalensis), the expression of a sex-determining transcription factor, the doublesex (Isdsx) gene is reportedly associated with female colour polymorphism (CP) (gynomorph for female-specific colour and andromorph for male-mimicking colour). Here, the function of Isdsx in thoracic coloration was investigated by electroporation-mediated RNA interference (RNAi). RNAi of the Isdsx common region in males and andromorphic females reduced melanization and thus changed the colour pattern into that of gynomorphic females, while the gynomorphic colour pattern was not affected. By contrast, RNAi against the Isdsx long isoform produced no changes, suggesting that the Isdsx short isoform is important for body colour masculinization in both males and andromorphic females. When examining the expression levels of five genes with differences between sexes and female morphs, two melanin-suppressing genes, black and ebony, were expressed at higher levels in the Isdsx RNAi body area than a control area. Therefore, the Isdsx short isoform may induce thoracic colour differentiation by suppressing black and ebony, thereby generating female CP in I. senegalensis. These findings contribute to the understanding of the molecular and evolutionary mechanisms underlying female CP in Odonata.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michihiko Takahashi
- Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, 6-3 Aramaki, Aoba, Sendai 980-8578, Japan
| | - Genta Okude
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, the University of Tokyo, Hongo 7-3-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
- Bioproduction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Central 6, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8566, Japan
| | - Ryo Futahashi
- Bioproduction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Central 6, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8566, Japan
| | - Yuma Takahashi
- Department of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Chiba University, 1-33 Yayoi, Inage, Chiba 263-8522, Japan
| | - Masakado Kawata
- Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, 6-3 Aramaki, Aoba, Sendai 980-8578, Japan
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34
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Evolution of sexual development and sexual dimorphism in insects. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2021; 69:129-139. [PMID: 33848958 DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2021.02.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2021] [Revised: 02/19/2021] [Accepted: 02/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Most animal species consist of two distinct sexes. At the morphological, physiological, and behavioral levels the differences between males and females are numerous and dramatic, yet at the genomic level they are often slight or absent. This disconnect is overcome because simple genetic differences or environmental signals are able to direct the sex-specific expression of a shared genome. A canonical picture of how this process works in insects emerged from decades of work on Drosophila. But recent years have seen an explosion of molecular-genetic and developmental work on a broad range of insects. Drawing these studies together, we describe the evolution of sexual dimorphism from a comparative perspective and argue that insect sex determination and differentiation systems are composites of rapidly evolving and highly conserved elements.
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Jin B, Zhao Y, Liu P, Sun Y, Li X, Zhang X, Chen XG, Gu J. The direct regulation of Aalbdsx on AalVgR is indispensable for ovarian development in Aedes albopictus. PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE 2021; 77:1654-1667. [PMID: 33205515 DOI: 10.1002/ps.6185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Revised: 11/13/2020] [Accepted: 11/17/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Aedes albopictus is an important vector with an extensive worldwide distribution. Only female mosquitoes play a significant role in the transmission of pathogens. Doublesex (dsx) is a central nexus gene in the insect somatic sex determination hierarchy. RESULTS In this study, we characterized the full-length sex-specific splicing forms of the Ae. albopictus dsx (Aalbdsx) gene. Then, we identified 15 direct target genes of DSX in adult females using digital gene expression combined with quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) by performing a chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay with specific DSX antibodies. Knockdown of Aalbdsx suppressed ovarian development and decreased the transcript levels of the Aalbdsx target vitellogenin receptor (VgR) gene, whereas vitellogenin (Vg) expression showed an increase in the fat body. Genes in the major Vg regulatory pathway were also up-regulated. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that both Vg and VgR are direct target genes of Aalbdsx and that direct regulation of Aalbdsx on VgR is indispensable for ovarian development in Ae. albopictus, which not only provides a reference for the further elucidation of the evolutionarily conserved role of dsx in Ae. albopictus sexual differentiation but also reveals potential molecular targets for application to the development of sterile male mosquitoes to be released for vector control. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Binbin Jin
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yijie Zhao
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Peiwen Liu
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yan Sun
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiaocong Li
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xin Zhang
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiao-Guang Chen
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jinbao Gu
- Department of Pathogen Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
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He P, Ma YF, Wang MM, Wang H, Dewer Y, Abd El-Ghany NM, Chen GL, Yang GQ, Zhang F, He M. Silencing the odorant coreceptor (Orco) disrupts sex pheromonal communication and feeding responses in Blattella germanica: toward an alternative target for controlling insect-transmitted human diseases. PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE 2021; 77:1674-1682. [PMID: 33205592 DOI: 10.1002/ps.6187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2020] [Revised: 10/06/2020] [Accepted: 11/17/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The German cockroach, Blattella germanica, is one of the most severe pests of urban and rural areas. High-throughput genetic screening approaches indicate that the olfactory system of this pest is extremely powerful because it has an extensive array of olfactory receptor genes compared with many other insect species. Several of these genes have been identified previously, but their functions have not yet been characterized. RESULTS This study describes the sequence of five transcriptomes of B. germanica adult male antennae, female antennae, maxillary palps, legs, and fifth-instar nymph antennae to investigate expression patterns of odorant receptors (ORs). Approximately 90% of ORs were found to be the most highly expressed genes in adult or nymph antennae. Additionally, every OR requires an odorant co-receptor (Orco) to become fully functional, and this was selected and successfully inhibited by injection of the corresponding double-stranded (ds)RNA targeting the Orco. A strong RNA interference (RNAi) effect was observed in which > 75% of Orco messenger RNA (mRNA) was clearly suppressed after 72 h of treatment. Olfactory behavioral assays showed that Orco-impaired B. germanica respond more slowly and show less attraction to one volatile sex pheromone and food resources compared with a control group. CONCLUSION The results show that Orco plays a pivotal role in both sex pheromone and food-seeking olfactory processes, and provide an alternative genetic technique for controlling this urban pest species by olfactory disruption. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng He
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Guizhou University, Guiyang, P. R. China
| | - Yun-Feng Ma
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Guizhou University, Guiyang, P. R. China
| | - Mei-Mei Wang
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Guizhou University, Guiyang, P. R. China
| | - Hong Wang
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Guizhou University, Guiyang, P. R. China
| | - Youssef Dewer
- Bioassay Research Department, Central Agricultural Pesticide Laboratory, Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt
| | - Nesreen M Abd El-Ghany
- Pests and Plant Protection Department, Agricultural and Biological Division, National Research Centre, Giza, Egypt
| | - Guang-Lei Chen
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Guizhou University, Guiyang, P. R. China
| | - Gui-Qing Yang
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Guizhou University, Guiyang, P. R. China
| | - Fan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Resistance Research, College of Life Science, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, P. R. China
| | - Ming He
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Guizhou University, Guiyang, P. R. China
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Bain SA, Marshall H, de la Filia AG, Laetsch DR, Husnik F, Ross L. Sex-specific expression and DNA methylation in a species with extreme sexual dimorphism and paternal genome elimination. Mol Ecol 2021; 30:5687-5703. [PMID: 33629415 DOI: 10.1111/mec.15842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2020] [Revised: 12/27/2020] [Accepted: 02/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Phenotypic differences between sexes are often mediated by differential expression and alternative splicing of genes. However, the mechanisms that regulate these expression and splicing patterns remain poorly understood. The mealybug, Planococcus citri, displays extreme sexual dimorphism and exhibits an unusual instance of sex-specific genomic imprinting, paternal genome elimination (PGE), in which the paternal chromosomes in males are highly condensed and eliminated from the sperm. Planococcus citri has no sex chromosomes and both sexual dimorphism and PGE are predicted to be under epigenetic control. We recently showed that P. citri females display a highly unusual DNA methylation profile for an insect species, with the presence of promoter methylation associated with lower levels of gene expression. Here, we therefore decided to explore genome-wide differences in DNA methylation between male and female P. citri using whole-genome bisulphite sequencing. We identified extreme differences in genome-wide levels and patterns between the sexes. Males display overall higher levels of DNA methylation which manifest as more uniform low levels across the genome. Whereas females display more targeted high levels of methylation. We suggest these unique sex-specific differences are due to chromosomal differences caused by PGE and may be linked to possible ploidy compensation. Using RNA-Seq, we identify extensive sex-specific gene expression and alternative splicing, but we find no correlation with cis-acting DNA methylation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stevie A Bain
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Hollie Marshall
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | - Dominik R Laetsch
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Filip Husnik
- Evolution, Cell Biology, and Symbiosis Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Kunigami-gun, Japan
| | - Laura Ross
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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38
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Okude G, Futahashi R. Pigmentation and color pattern diversity in Odonata. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2021; 69:14-20. [PMID: 33482606 DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2020.12.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Revised: 12/15/2020] [Accepted: 12/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The order Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) comprises diurnal insects with well-developed vision, showing diverse colors in adult wings and bodies. It is one of the most ancestral winged insect groups. Because Odonata species use visual cues to recognize each other, color patterns have been investigated from ecological and evolutionary viewpoints. Here we review the recent progress on molecular mechanisms of pigmentation, especially focused on light-blue coloration. Results from histology and pigment analysis showed that ommochrome pigments on the proximal layer and pteridine pigments on the distal layer of the epidermis are essential for light-blue coloration. We also summarize genes involved in the biosynthesis of three major insect pigments conserved across insects and discuss that gene-functional analysis deserves future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Genta Okude
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan; Bioproduction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Central 6, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8566, Japan.
| | - Ryo Futahashi
- Bioproduction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Central 6, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8566, Japan.
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Insights into how development and life-history dynamics shape the evolution of venom. EvoDevo 2021; 12:1. [PMID: 33413660 PMCID: PMC7791878 DOI: 10.1186/s13227-020-00171-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2020] [Accepted: 12/22/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Venomous animals are a striking example of the convergent evolution of a complex trait. These animals have independently evolved an apparatus that synthesizes, stores, and secretes a mixture of toxic compounds to the target animal through the infliction of a wound. Among these distantly related animals, some can modulate and compartmentalize functionally distinct venoms related to predation and defense. A process to separate distinct venoms can occur within and across complex life cycles as well as more streamlined ontogenies, depending on their life-history requirements. Moreover, the morphological and cellular complexity of the venom apparatus likely facilitates the functional diversity of venom deployed within a given life stage. Intersexual variation of venoms has also evolved further contributing to the massive diversity of toxic compounds characterized in these animals. These changes in the biochemical phenotype of venom can directly affect the fitness of these animals, having important implications in their diet, behavior, and mating biology. In this review, we explore the current literature that is unraveling the temporal dynamics of the venom system that are required by these animals to meet their ecological functions. These recent findings have important consequences in understanding the evolution and development of a convergent complex trait and its organismal and ecological implications.
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40
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femaleless Controls Sex Determination and Dosage Compensation Pathways in Females of Anopheles Mosquitoes. Curr Biol 2021; 31:1084-1091.e4. [PMID: 33417880 PMCID: PMC7955153 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.12.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2020] [Revised: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 12/11/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
The insect sex determination and the intimately linked dosage compensation pathways represent a challenging evolutionary puzzle that has been solved only in Drosophila melanogaster. Analyses of orthologs of the Drosophila genes identified in non-drosophilid taxa1,2 revealed that evolution of sex determination pathways is consistent with a bottom-up mode,3 where only the terminal genes within the pathway are well conserved. doublesex (dsx), occupying a bottom-most position and encoding sex-specific proteins orchestrating downstream sexual differentiation processes, is an ancient sex-determining gene present in all studied species.2,4,5 With the exception of lepidopterans, its female-specific splicing is known to be regulated by transformer (tra) and its co-factor transformer-2 (tra2).6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 Here we show that in the African malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae, a gene, which likely arose in the Anopheles lineage and which we call femaleless (fle), controls sex determination in females by regulating splicing of dsx and fruitless (fru; another terminal gene within a branch of the sex determination pathway). Moreover, fle represents a novel molecular link between the sex determination and dosage compensation pathways. It is necessary to suppress activation of dosage compensation in females, as demonstrated by the significant upregulation of the female X chromosome genes and a correlated female-specific lethality, but no negative effect on males, in response to fle knockdown. This unexpected property, combined with a high level of conservation in sequence and function in anopheline mosquitoes, makes fle an excellent target for genetic control of all major vectors of human malaria. fle is a new sex determination pathway element conserved in Anopheles mosquitoes fle may have originated in the Anopheles lineage and is highly conserved in Anopheles fle suppresses activation of dosage compensation in females Depletion of fle transcripts is lethal or otherwise deleterious to females
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Deshmukh R, Lakhe D, Kunte K. Tissue-specific developmental regulation and isoform usage underlie the role of doublesex in sex differentiation and mimicry in Papilio swallowtails. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2020; 7:200792. [PMID: 33047041 PMCID: PMC7540742 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.200792] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2020] [Accepted: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Adaptive phenotypes often arise by rewiring existing developmental networks. Co-option of transcription factors in novel contexts has facilitated the evolution of ecologically important adaptations. doublesex (dsx) governs fundamental sex differentiation during embryonic stages and has been co-opted to regulate diverse secondary sexual dimorphisms during pupal development of holometabolous insects. In Papilio polytes, dsx regulates female-limited mimetic polymorphism, resulting in mimetic and non-mimetic forms. To understand how a critical gene such as dsx regulates novel wing patterns while maintaining its basic function in sex differentiation, we traced its expression through metamorphosis in P. polytes using developmental transcriptome data. We found three key dsx expression peaks: (i) eggs in pre- and post-ovisposition stages; (ii) developing wing discs and body in final larval instar; and (iii) 3-day pupae. We identified potential dsx targets using co-expression and differential expression analysis, and found distinct, non-overlapping sets of genes-containing putative dsx-binding sites-in developing wings versus abdominal tissue and in mimetic versus non-mimetic individuals. This suggests that dsx regulates distinct downstream targets in different tissues and wing colour morphs and has perhaps acquired new, previously unknown targets, for regulating mimetic polymorphism. Additionally, we observed that the three female isoforms of dsx were differentially expressed across stages (from eggs to adults) and tissues and differed in their protein structure. This may promote differential protein-protein interactions for each isoform and facilitate sub-functionalization of dsx activity across its isoforms. Our findings suggest that dsx employs tissue-specific downstream effectors and partitions its functions across multiple isoforms to regulate primary and secondary sexual dimorphism through insect development.
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42
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Meisel RP. Evolution of Sex Determination and Sex Chromosomes: A Novel Alternative Paradigm. Bioessays 2020; 42:e1900212. [DOI: 10.1002/bies.201900212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2019] [Revised: 05/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Richard P. Meisel
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry University of Houston 3455 Cullen Blvd Houston TX 77204‐5001 USA
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Meisel RP, Delclos PJ, Wexler JR. The X chromosome of the German cockroach, Blattella germanica, is homologous to a fly X chromosome despite 400 million years divergence. BMC Biol 2019; 17:100. [PMID: 31806031 PMCID: PMC6894488 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-019-0721-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2019] [Accepted: 11/11/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Sex chromosome evolution is a dynamic process that can proceed at varying rates across lineages. For example, different chromosomes can be sex-linked between closely related species, whereas other sex chromosomes have been conserved for > 100 million years. Cases of long-term sex chromosome conservation could be informative of factors that constrain sex chromosome evolution. Cytological similarities between the X chromosomes of the German cockroach (Blattella germanica) and most flies suggest that they may be homologous—possibly representing an extreme case of long-term conservation. Results To test the hypothesis that the cockroach and fly X chromosomes are homologous, we analyzed whole-genome sequence data from cockroaches. We found evidence in both sequencing coverage and heterozygosity that a significant excess of the same genes are on both the cockroach and fly X chromosomes. We also present evidence that the candidate X-linked cockroach genes may be dosage compensated in hemizygous males. Consistent with this hypothesis, three regulators of transcription and chromatin on the fly X chromosome are conserved in the cockroach genome. Conclusions Our results support our hypothesis that the German cockroach shares the same X chromosome as most flies. This may represent the convergent evolution of the X chromosome in the lineages leading to cockroaches and flies. Alternatively, the common ancestor of most insects may have had an X chromosome that resembled the extant cockroach and fly X. Cockroaches and flies diverged ∼ 400 million years ago, which would be the longest documented conservation of a sex chromosome. Cockroaches and flies have different mechanisms of sex determination, raising the possibility that the X chromosome was conserved despite the evolution of the sex determination pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard P Meisel
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, 3455 Cullen Blvd., Houston, 77204, TX, USA.
| | - Pablo J Delclos
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, 3455 Cullen Blvd., Houston, 77204, TX, USA
| | - Judith R Wexler
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of California, Davis, One Shields Ave, Davis, 95616, CA, USA.,Department of Entomology, University of Maryland, 4112 Plant Sciences Building, College Park, 20742, MD, USA
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