Graduate School of Science, Osaka City University, Sugimoto, Sumiyoshi, Osaka 558-8585, Japan.
J Insect Physiol. 2011 Jul;57(7):935-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2011.04.006. Epub 2011 Apr 28.
The photoperiodic response is crucial for many insects to adapt to seasonal changes in temperate regions. It was recently shown that the circadian clock genes period (per) and cycle (cyc) are involved in the photoperiodic regulation of reproductive diapause in the bean bug Riptortus pedestris females. Here, we investigated the involvement of per and cyc both in the circadian rhythm of cuticle deposition and in the photoperiodic diapause of R. pedestris males using RNA interference (RNAi). RNAi of per and cyc disrupted the cuticle deposition rhythm and resulted in distinct cuticle layers. RNAi of per induced development of the male reproductive organs even under diapause-inducing short-day conditions, whereas RNAi of cyc suppressed development of the reproductive organs even under diapause-averting long-day conditions. Thus, the present study suggests that the circadian clock operated by per and cyc governs photoperiodism of males as that of females.
光周期反应对于许多昆虫在温带地区适应季节变化至关重要。最近的研究表明，生物钟基因 period (per) 和 cycle (cyc) 参与了豆芫菁 Riptortus pedestris 雌虫生殖滞育的光周期调控。在这里，我们使用 RNA 干扰 (RNAi) 技术研究了 per 和 cyc 在 R. pedestris 雄虫表皮沉积的昼夜节律和光周期滞育中的作用。per 和 cyc 的 RNAi 扰乱了表皮沉积节律，并导致明显的表皮层。per 的 RNAi 诱导雄虫生殖器官的发育，即使在诱导滞育的短日条件下，而 cyc 的 RNAi 抑制生殖器官的发育，即使在避免滞育的长日条件下。因此，本研究表明，由 per 和 cyc 控制的生物钟调节了雄性的光周期，就像调节雌性的光周期一样。
