Vector Behaviour and Pathogen Interaction Group, Centro de Pesquisas René Rachou - FIOCRUZ, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
Department of Entomology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.
Sci Rep. 2017 Jan 6;7:40049. doi: 10.1038/srep40049.
The triatomine bug Rhodnius prolixus is a main vector of Chagas disease, which affects several million people, mostly in Latin-America. Host searching, pheromone communication, and microclimatic preferences are aspects of its behaviour that depend on multimodal sensory inputs. The molecular bases of these sensory processes are largely unknown. The expression levels of genes transcribed in antennae were compared between 5 instar larvae, and female and male adults by means of RNA-Seq. The antennae of R. prolixus showed increased expression of several chemosensory-related genes in imaginal bugs, while both sexes had similar expression patterns for most target genes. Few cases suggest involvement of target genes in sexually dimorphic functions. Most odorant and ionotropic receptor genes seemed to be expressed in all libraries. OBPs and CSPs showed very high expression levels. Other sensory-related genes such as TRPs, PPKs and mechanoreceptors had consistent levels of expression in all libraries. Our study characterises most of the sensory gene repertoire of these insects, opening an avenue for functional genetics studies. The increase in expression of chemosensory genes suggests an enhanced role in adult bugs. This knowledge allows developing new behaviour interfering strategies, increasing the options for translational research in the vector control field.
吸血蝽是克氏锥虫病（恰加斯病）的主要传播媒介，全球有数百万患者，主要集中在拉丁美洲。吸血蝽的宿主搜索、信息素通讯和微气候偏好等行为取决于多种感觉输入。这些感觉过程的分子基础在很大程度上是未知的。通过 RNA-Seq，比较了 5 龄幼虫、雌虫和雄虫触角转录基因的表达水平。结果表明，在成虫中，几丁质相关基因在触角中的表达水平增加，而大多数靶基因在两性中具有相似的表达模式。少数情况下表明靶基因参与性别二态功能。大多数气味和离子型受体基因似乎在所有文库中都有表达。OBPs 和 CSPs 表现出非常高的表达水平。其他感觉相关基因，如 TRPs、PPKs 和机械感受器，在所有文库中都具有一致的表达水平。本研究描述了这些昆虫的大部分感觉基因库，为功能遗传学研究开辟了途径。化学感觉基因表达的增加表明在成虫中具有增强的作用。这些知识为开发新的行为干扰策略提供了依据，增加了在媒介控制领域转化研究的选择。
