Li Xiao, Li Jian-Wen, Sun Wen-Xiu, Li Wei, Gao Hua-Yuan, Liu Tong-Xian, Qu Ming-Jing
Shandong Peanut Research Institute, Qingdao, China.
College of Life Sciences, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, China.
Front Physiol. 2022 May 31;13:907667. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2022.907667. eCollection 2022.
Chemosensory genes play important roles in insect behaviors and have thus become potential molecular targets for pest control based on the manipulation of chemoreception-driven behaviors. The great gray weevil (Chevrolat) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is an important agricultural pest that causes serious economic losses to many crops in China, but its chemosensory genes have not been reported. Here we assembled the antennal transcriptomes of female and male adult and revealed the major chemosensory genes necessary for olfaction. A total of 138 candidate chemosensory genes in six families were identified, including 41 encoding odorant-binding proteins (OBPs), 11 encoding chemosensory proteins (CSPs), 62 encoding odorant receptors (ORs), 15 encoding gustatory receptors (GRs), six encoding ionotropic receptors (IRs), and three encoding sensory neuron membrane proteins (SNMPs). We analyzed their phylogenetic relationship based on the amino acid sequences of these chemosensory-related protein families in and other insects, and the expression profiles based on their antennal transcriptomes. Chemosensory genes that show antenna-abundant/specific or sex-biased expression were observed, suggesting that these genes might have functions in olfaction. Furthermore, we chose an antenna-abundant OBP belonging to ABPX subfamily, SvelOBP15, to investigate its binding property. The results showed that among 33 tested compounds, SvelOBP15 displayed high binding affinities (Ki = 7.36-12.94 μmol/L) with farnesol, nerolidol, limonene and diisobutyl phthalate, indicating that SvelOBP15 plays olfactory roles by binding and transporting specific plant volatiles. These findings will help us better understand the olfactory systems of , and provide a basis for functional elucidation of these chemosensory genes.
化学感应基因在昆虫行为中发挥着重要作用,因此基于对化学感应驱动行为的操控,它们已成为害虫防治的潜在分子靶点。大灰象甲(Chevrolat)(鞘翅目:象甲科)是一种重要的农业害虫,在中国给许多农作物造成了严重的经济损失,但其化学感应基因尚未见报道。在此,我们组装了成年雌雄大灰象甲的触角转录组,并揭示了嗅觉所需的主要化学感应基因。共鉴定出六个家族的138个候选化学感应基因,包括41个编码气味结合蛋白(OBP)的基因、11个编码化学感应蛋白(CSP)的基因、62个编码气味受体(OR)的基因、15个编码味觉受体(GR)的基因、6个编码离子型受体(IR)的基因和3个编码感觉神经元膜蛋白(SNMP)的基因。我们基于这些化学感应相关蛋白家族在大灰象甲和其他昆虫中的氨基酸序列分析了它们的系统发育关系,并基于触角转录组分析了它们的表达谱。观察到显示触角丰富/特异或性别偏向表达的化学感应基因,表明这些基因可能在嗅觉中发挥作用。此外,我们选择了一个属于ABPX亚家族、触角丰富的OBP,即SvelOBP15,来研究其结合特性。结果表明,在33种测试化合物中,SvelOBP15与法尼醇、橙花叔醇、柠檬烯和邻苯二甲酸二异丁酯具有高结合亲和力(Ki = 7.36 - 12.94 μmol/L),表明SvelOBP15通过结合和转运特定植物挥发物发挥嗅觉作用。这些发现将有助于我们更好地理解大灰象甲的嗅觉系统,并为这些化学感应基因的功能阐释提供依据。