Husseneder Claudia, Donaldson Jennifer R, Foil Lane D
Department of Entomology, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2016 Mar 17;11(3):e0151675. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0151675. eCollection 2016.
The Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki, is a costly invasive urban pest in warm and humid regions around the world. Feeding workers of the Formosan subterranean termite genetically engineered yeast strains that express synthetic protozoacidal lytic peptides has been shown to kill the cellulose digesting termite gut protozoa, which results in death of the termite colony. In this study, we tested if Melittin, a natural lytic peptide from bee venom, could be delivered into the termite gut via genetically engineered yeast and if the expressed Melittin killed termites via lysis of symbiotic protozoa in the gut of termite workers and/or destruction of the gut tissue itself. Melittin expressing yeast did kill protozoa in the termite gut within 56 days of exposure. The expressed Melittin weakened the gut but did not add a synergistic effect to the protozoacidal action by gut necrosis. While Melittin could be applied for termite control via killing the cellulose-digesting protozoa in the termite gut, it is unlikely to be useful as a standalone product to control insects that do not rely on symbiotic protozoa for survival.
台湾乳白蚁（Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki）是世界温暖湿润地区一种造成巨大经济损失的入侵性城市害虫。给台湾乳白蚁的觅食工蚁喂食表达合成杀原生动物裂解肽的基因工程酵母菌株，已证明可杀死消化纤维素的白蚁肠道原生动物，从而导致白蚁群体死亡。在本研究中，我们测试了蜂毒中的天然裂解肽蜂毒素是否可通过基因工程酵母递送至白蚁肠道，以及表达的蜂毒素是否通过裂解白蚁工蚁肠道中的共生原生动物和/或破坏肠道组织本身来杀死白蚁。表达蜂毒素的酵母在暴露56天内确实杀死了白蚁肠道中的原生动物。表达的蜂毒素使肠道变弱，但未通过肠道坏死对白虫原生动物的作用产生协同效应。虽然蜂毒素可通过杀死白蚁肠道中消化纤维素的原生动物来用于白蚁防治，但它不太可能作为一种独立产品用于防治不依赖共生原生动物生存的昆虫。
