Qin Xinghu, Hao Kun, Ma Jingchuan, Huang Xunbing, Tu Xiongbing, Ali Md Panna, Pittendrigh Barry R, Cao Guangchun, Wang Guangjun, Nong Xiangqun, Whitman Douglas W, Zhang Zehua
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
School of Biology, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, United Kingdom.
Front Physiol. 2017 Oct 10;8:770. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2017.00770. eCollection 2017.
While ecological adaptation in insects can be reflected by plasticity of phenotype, determining the causes and molecular mechanisms for phenotypic plasticity (PP) remains a crucial and still difficult question in ecology, especially where control of insect pests is involved. is one of the most dominant pests in the Inner Mongolia steppe and represents an excellent system to study phenotypic plasticity. To better understand ecological factors affecting grasshopper phenotypic plasticity and its molecular control, we conducted a full transcriptional screening of grasshoppers reared in four different grassland patches in Inner Mongolia. Grasshoppers showed different degrees of PP associated with unique gene expressions and different habitat plant community compositions. Grasshopper performance variables were susceptible to habitat environment conditions and closely associated with plant architectures. Intriguingly, eco-transcriptome analysis revealed five potential candidate genes playing important roles in grasshopper performance, with gene expression closely relating to PP and plant community factors. By linking the grasshopper performances to gene profiles and ecological factors using canonical regression, we first demonstrated the eco-transcriptomic architecture (ETA) of grasshopper phenotypic traits (ETAGPTs). ETAGPTs revealed plant food type, plant density, coverage, and height were the main ecological factors influencing PP, while insect cuticle protein (ICP), negative elongation factor A (NELFA), and lactase-phlorizin hydrolase (LCT) were the key genes associated with PP. Our study gives a clear picture of gene-environment interaction in the formation and maintenance of PP and enriches our understanding of the transcriptional events underlying molecular control of rapid phenotypic plasticity associated with environmental variability. The findings of this study may also provide new targets for pest control and highlight the significance of ecological management practice on grassland conservation.
虽然昆虫的生态适应可以通过表型可塑性来体现，但确定表型可塑性（PP）的成因和分子机制在生态学中仍然是一个关键且颇具难度的问题，尤其是在涉及害虫防治的情况下。 是内蒙古草原最主要的害虫之一，是研究表型可塑性的一个极佳系统。为了更好地理解影响蝗虫表型可塑性及其分子调控的生态因素，我们对在内蒙古四个不同草地斑块中饲养的蝗虫进行了全转录组筛选。蝗虫表现出与独特基因表达和不同栖息地植物群落组成相关的不同程度的PP。蝗虫的性能变量易受栖息地环境条件影响，且与植物结构密切相关。有趣的是，生态转录组分析揭示了五个在蝗虫性能中起重要作用的潜在候选基因，其基因表达与PP和植物群落因素密切相关。通过使用典型回归将蝗虫性能与基因图谱和生态因素联系起来，我们首次展示了蝗虫表型性状的生态转录组结构（ETAGPTs）。ETAGPTs表明植物食物类型、植物密度、覆盖率和高度是影响PP的主要生态因素，而昆虫表皮蛋白（ICP）、负伸长因子A（NELFA）和乳糖酶 - 根皮苷水解酶（LCT）是与PP相关的关键基因。我们的研究清晰地呈现了基因 - 环境相互作用在PP形成和维持中的情况，并丰富了我们对与环境变异性相关的快速表型可塑性分子调控背后转录事件的理解。本研究结果还可能为害虫防治提供新的靶点，并突出生态管理实践对草地保护的重要性。
