Peng Zhengke, Ren Jun, Su Qi, Zeng Yang, Tian Lixia, Wang Shaoli, Wu Qingjun, Liang Pei, Xie Wen, Zhang Youjun
Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China.
Department of Entomology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
Insects. 2021 Mar 17;12(3):254. doi: 10.3390/insects12030254.
Chitinases are of great importance in chitin degradation and remodeling in insects. However, the genome-wide distribution of chitinase-like gene family in , a destructive pest worldwide, is still elusive. With the help of bioinformatics, we annotated 14 genes that encode putative chitinase-like proteins, including ten chitinases (Cht), three imaginal disk growth factors (), and one endo-β-N-acetylglucosaminidase () in the genome of the whitefly, . These genes were phylogenetically grouped into eight clades, among which 13 genes were classified in the glycoside hydrolase family 18 groups and one in the group. Afterwards, developmental expression analysis suggested that , and were highly expressed in nymphal stages and exhibit similar expression patterns, implying their underlying role in nymph ecdysis. Notably, nymphs exhibited a lower rate of survival when challenged by dsRNA targeting these three genes via a nanomaterial-promoted RNAi method. In addition, silencing of significantly resulted in a longer duration of development compared to control nymphs. These results indicate a key role of , and in nymph molting. Our research depicts the differences of chitinase-like family genes in structure and function and identified potential targets for RNAi-based whitefly management.
几丁质酶在昆虫几丁质降解和重塑过程中具有重要意义。然而，在这种全球范围内具有破坏性的害虫烟粉虱中，几丁质酶样基因家族的全基因组分布情况仍不清楚。借助生物信息学方法，我们在烟粉虱基因组中注释了14个编码假定几丁质酶样蛋白的基因，其中包括10个几丁质酶（Cht）、3个成虫盘生长因子（IDGF）和1个内切-β-N-乙酰氨基葡萄糖苷酶（ENGase）。这些基因在系统发育上被分为8个分支，其中13个基因被归类于糖苷水解酶家族18组，1个基因在ENGase组。随后，发育表达分析表明，Cht1、Cht2和Cht5在若虫阶段高度表达且呈现相似的表达模式，这暗示它们在若虫蜕皮过程中发挥着潜在作用。值得注意的是，通过纳米材料促进的RNA干扰方法用靶向这三个基因的dsRNA处理若虫时，若虫的存活率较低。此外，与对照若虫相比，沉默Cht2显著导致发育持续时间延长。这些结果表明Cht1、Cht2和Cht5在烟粉虱若虫蜕皮中起关键作用。我们的研究描述了几丁质酶样家族基因在结构和功能上的差异，并确定了基于RNA干扰的烟粉虱治理的潜在靶点。
