Zhang He, Bai Juan, Huang Shuning, Liu Huihui, Lin Jintian, Hou Youming
State Key Laboratory of Ecological Pest Control for Fujian and Taiwan Crops, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fujian, China.
Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Ecology, College of Plant Protection, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fujian, China.
Front Physiol. 2020 Feb 28;11:159. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2020.00159. eCollection 2020.
The red palm weevil is a devastating, invasive pest that causes serious damages to palm trees, and its invasiveness depends on its strong ability of physiological and behavioral adaptability. Neuropeptides and their receptors regulate physiology and behavior of insects, but these protein partners have not been identified from many insects. Here, we systematically identified neuropeptide precursors and the corresponding receptors in the red palm weevil, and analyzed their tissue expression patterns under control conditions and after pathogen infection. A total of 43 putative neuropeptide precursors were identified, including an extra myosuppressin peptide was identified with amino acid substitutions at two conserved sites. Forty-four putative neuropeptide receptors belonging to three classes were also identified, in which neuropeptide F receptors and insulin receptors were expanded compared to those in other insects. Based on qRT-PCR analyses, genes coding for several neuropeptide precursors and receptors were highly expressed in tissues other than the nervous system, suggesting that these neuropeptides and receptors play other roles in addition to neuro-reception. Some of the neuropeptides and receptors, like the tachykinin-related peptide and receptor, were significantly induced by pathogen infection, especially sensitive to and . Systemic identification and initial characterization of neuropeptides and their receptors in the red palm weevil provide a framework for further studies to reveal the functions of these ligand- and receptor-couples in regulating physiology, behavior, and immunity in this important insect pest species.
红棕象甲是一种极具破坏力的入侵性害虫，会对棕榈树造成严重损害，其入侵性取决于其强大的生理和行为适应能力。神经肽及其受体调节昆虫的生理和行为，但许多昆虫尚未鉴定出这些蛋白质伴侣。在此，我们系统地鉴定了红棕象甲中的神经肽前体和相应受体，并分析了它们在对照条件下和病原体感染后的组织表达模式。共鉴定出43个假定的神经肽前体，包括一个在两个保守位点有氨基酸替代的额外肌抑制肽。还鉴定出属于三类的44个假定神经肽受体，其中神经肽F受体和胰岛素受体与其他昆虫相比有所扩增。基于qRT-PCR分析，编码几种神经肽前体和受体的基因在神经系统以外的组织中高表达，表明这些神经肽和受体除了神经接收外还发挥其他作用。一些神经肽和受体，如速激肽相关肽和受体，受到病原体感染的显著诱导，对[具体病原体或刺激物1]和[具体病原体或刺激物2]特别敏感。对红棕象甲中神经肽及其受体的系统鉴定和初步表征为进一步研究揭示这些配体-受体对在调节这种重要害虫物种的生理、行为和免疫中的功能提供了框架。
