Department of Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Institute of Biology I (Zoology), University of Freiburg, 79104, Freiburg, Germany.
Laboratory of Molecular Biology & Evolution (MBE), Department of Biology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, 1000, Brussels, Belgium.
Commun Biol. 2023 Feb 3;6(1):147. doi: 10.1038/s42003-022-04370-0.
Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) cover the cuticle of insects and serve as desiccation barrier and as semiochemicals. While the main enzymatic steps of CHC biosynthesis are well understood, few of the underlying genes have been identified. Here we show how exploitation of intrasexual CHC dimorphism in a mason wasp, Odynerus spinipes, in combination with whole-genome sequencing and comparative transcriptomics facilitated identification of such genes. RNAi-mediated knockdown of twelve candidate gene orthologs in the honey bee, Apis mellifera, confirmed nine genes impacting CHC profile composition. Most of them have predicted functions consistent with current knowledge of CHC metabolism. However, we found first-time evidence for a fatty acid amide hydrolase also influencing CHC profile composition. In situ hybridization experiments furthermore suggest trophocytes participating in CHC biosynthesis. Our results set the base for experimental CHC profile manipulation in Hymenoptera and imply that the evolutionary origin of CHC biosynthesis predates the arthropods' colonization of land.
表皮碳氢化合物 (CHC) 覆盖昆虫的外骨骼，起到脱水屏障和半化学物质的作用。虽然 CHC 生物合成的主要酶促步骤已经得到很好的理解，但很少有潜在的基因被识别。在这里，我们展示了如何利用 mason 黄蜂 Odynerus spinipes 中的种内 CHC 二态性，结合全基因组测序和比较转录组学，鉴定出这些基因。在蜜蜂 Apis mellifera 中，通过 RNAi 介导的十二种候选基因直系同源物的敲低，证实了有九个基因影响 CHC 谱组成。它们中的大多数具有与 CHC 代谢当前知识一致的预测功能。然而，我们首次发现脂肪酸酰胺水解酶也会影响 CHC 谱组成。原位杂交实验进一步表明滋养细胞参与 CHC 生物合成。我们的研究结果为膜翅目昆虫的实验 CHC 谱操纵奠定了基础，并表明 CHC 生物合成的进化起源早于节肢动物登陆陆地。
