Department of Entomology, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China.
Genes (Basel). 2019 Dec 23;11(1):19. doi: 10.3390/genes11010019.
Wing dimorphism is considered as an adaptive trait of insects. Brown planthoppers (BPHs) , a serious pest of rice, are either macropterous or brachypterous. Genetic and environmental factors are both likely to control wing morph determination in BPHs, but the hereditary law and genes network are still unknown. Here, we investigated changes in gene expression levels between macropterous and brachypterous BPHs by creating artificially bred morphotype lines. The nearly pure-bred strains of macropterous and brachypterous BPHs were established, and their transcriptomes and gene expression levels were compared. Over ten-thousand differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between macropterous and brachypterous strains were found in the egg, nymph, and adult stages, and the three stages shared 6523 DEGs. The regulation of actin cytoskeleton, focal adhesion, tight junction, and adherens junction pathways were consistently enriched with DEGs across the three stages, whereas insulin signaling pathway, metabolic pathways, vascular smooth muscle contraction, platelet activation, oxytocin signaling pathway, sugar metabolism, and glycolysis/gluconeogenesis were significantly enriched by DEGs in a specific stage. Gene expression trend profiles across three stages were different between the two strains. Eggs, nymphs, and adults from the macropterous strain were distinguishable from the brachypterous based on gene expression levels, and genes that were related to wing morphs were differentially expressed between wing strains or strain × stage. A proposed mode based on genes and environments to modulate the wing dimorphism of BPHs was provided.
翅型二态性被认为是昆虫的一种适应特征。褐飞虱是水稻的严重害虫，其翅型要么是长翅型，要么是短翅型。遗传和环境因素都可能控制褐飞虱的翅型决定，但遗传规律和基因网络仍不清楚。在这里，我们通过创建人工培育的形态型系来研究长翅型和短翅型褐飞虱之间的基因表达水平变化。建立了近纯系的长翅型和短翅型褐飞虱，并比较了它们的转录组和基因表达水平。在卵、若虫和成虫三个阶段，长翅型和短翅型菌株之间发现了超过 10000 个差异表达基因（DEGs），这三个阶段共有 6523 个 DEGs。肌动蛋白细胞骨架、粘着斑、紧密连接和粘着连接途径的调控在三个阶段都一致富集了 DEGs，而胰岛素信号通路、代谢途径、血管平滑肌收缩、血小板激活、催产素信号通路、糖代谢和糖异生在特定阶段则显著富集了 DEGs。两个菌株在三个阶段的基因表达趋势谱不同。长翅型菌株的卵、若虫和成虫与短翅型菌株区分开来，与翅型相关的基因在翅型菌株或菌株×阶段之间存在差异表达。提出了一个基于基因和环境来调节褐飞虱翅型二态性的模式。
