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Souza D, Christensen SA, Wu K, Buss L, Kleckner K, Darrisaw C, Shirk PD, Siegfried BD. RNAi-induced knockdown of white gene in the southern green stink bug (Nezara viridula L.). Sci Rep 2022; 12:10396. [PMID: 35729244 PMCID: PMC9213411 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-14620-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
The southern green stink bug (SGSB) Nezara viridula L. is one of the most common stink bug species in the United States and can cause significant yield loss in a variety of crops. A suitable marker for the assessment of gene-editing tools in SGSB has yet to be characterized. The white gene, first documented in Drosophila, has been a useful target to assess the efficiency of introduced mutations in many species as it controls pigmentation processes and mutants display readily identifiable phenotypes. In this study we used the RNAi technique to investigate functions and phenotypes associated with the white ortholog in the SGSB and to validate white as a marker for genetic transformation in this species. This study revealed that white may be a suitable marker for germline transformation in the SGSB as white transcript knockdown was not lethal, did not impair embryo development and provided a distinguishable phenotype. Our results demonstrated that the white ortholog in SGSB is involved in the pathway for ommochrome synthesis and suggested additional functions of this gene such as in the integument composition, management of hemolymph compounds and riboflavin mobilization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dariane Souza
- Entomology and Nematology Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611, USA. .,Syngenta Crop Protection AG, WST-540.1.17 Schaffhauserstrasse, 4332, Stein, Switzerland.
| | - Shawn A Christensen
- USDA-ARS Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology, Gainesville, 32608, USA
| | - Ke Wu
- Entomology and Nematology Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611, USA
| | - Lyle Buss
- Entomology and Nematology Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611, USA
| | - Kaylin Kleckner
- Entomology and Nematology Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611, USA
| | - Constance Darrisaw
- Entomology and Nematology Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611, USA
| | - Paul D Shirk
- USDA-ARS Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology, Gainesville, 32608, USA
| | - Blair D Siegfried
- Entomology and Nematology Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611, USA
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Bai X, Zeng T, Ni XY, Su HA, Huang J, Ye GY, Lu YY, Qi YX. CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockout of the eye pigmentation gene white leads to alterations in colour of head spots in the oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis. INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2019; 28:837-849. [PMID: 31106480 DOI: 10.1111/imb.12592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2018] [Revised: 04/16/2019] [Accepted: 05/14/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The intensely studied white gene is widely used as a genetic marker in Drosophila melanogaster. Here, we cloned and characterized the white gene in an important pest of the fruit industry, Bactrocera dorsalis, to understand its functional role in pigmentation. We obtained BdWhite knockout strains, based on the wild-type strain, using the CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing system, and found that mutants lost pigmentation in the compound eye and their black head spots. We then examined differences in the expression levels of genes associated with melanin pigmentation between mutants and the wild-type strain using quantitative reverse transcription PCR. We found that transcription levels of the Bd-yellow1 were lower in the head of mutants than in the wild-type strain, and there were no significant differences in expression of the other six genes between mutants and the wild type. Since yellow is critical for melanin biosynthesis (Heinze et al., Scientific Reports. 2017;7:4582), the lower levels of expression of Bd-yellow1 in mutants led to reduced dark pigmentation in head spots. Our results provide the first evidence, to our knowledge, that white may play a functional role in cuticle pigmentation by affecting the expression of yellow.
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Affiliation(s)
- X Bai
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - T Zeng
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - X-Y Ni
- Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - H-A Su
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - J Huang
- Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - G-Y Ye
- Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Y-Y Lu
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Y-X Qi
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
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Francikowski J, Krzyżowski M, Kochańska B, Potrzebska M, Baran B, Chajec Ł, Urbisz A, Małota K, Łozowski B, Kloc M, Kubiak J. Characterisation of white and yellow eye colour mutant strains of house cricket, Acheta domesticus. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0216281. [PMID: 31059541 PMCID: PMC6502451 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0216281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2018] [Accepted: 04/17/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Two eye-colour mutant strains, white (W) and yellow (Y) of house cricket Acheta domesticus were established in our laboratory. We phenotyped and genotyped the mutants, performed genetic crossings and studied the eye structure and pigment composition using light and electron microscopy and biochemical analysis. We show that W and Y phenotypes are controlled by a single autosomal recessive allele, as both traits are metabolically independent. The analysis of the mutants`eye structure showed a reduced number of dark pigment granules while simultaneously, and an increased amount of light vacuoles in white eye mutants was observed. Significant differences in eye pigment composition between strains were also found. The Y mutant had a lower number of ommochromes, while the W mutant had a lower number of ommochromes and pteridines. This indicates that mutated genes are involved in two different, independent metabolic pathways regulating tryptophan metabolism enzymes, pigment transporter granules or pigment granule formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacek Francikowski
- Department of Animal Physiology and Ecotoxicology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
- * E-mail:
| | - Michał Krzyżowski
- Department of Animal Physiology and Ecotoxicology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
| | - Barbara Kochańska
- The Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Marta Potrzebska
- Department of Animal Physiology and Ecotoxicology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
| | - Bartosz Baran
- Department of Animal Physiology and Ecotoxicology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
| | - Łukasz Chajec
- Department of Embryology and Histology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
| | - Anna Urbisz
- Department of Embryology and Histology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
| | - Karol Małota
- Department of Embryology and Histology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
| | - Bartosz Łozowski
- Department of Animal Physiology and Ecotoxicology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
| | - Malgorzata Kloc
- The Houston Methodist Research Institute, Houston,Texas, United States of America
- The Houston Methodist Hospital, Department of Surgery, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- The University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Department of Genetics, Houston Texas, United States of America
| | - Jacek Kubiak
- Department of Regenerative Medicine and Cell Biology, Military Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (WIHE), Warsaw, Poland
- UnivRennes, CNRS, IGDR (Institute of Genetics and Development of Rennes), UMR 6290, Cell Cycle Group, Faculty of Medicine, Rennes, France
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Liu SH, Luo J, Yang BJ, Wang AY, Tang J. karmoisin and cardinal ortholog genes participate in the ommochrome synthesis of Nilaparvata lugens (Hemiptera: Delphacidae). INSECT SCIENCE 2019; 26:35-43. [PMID: 28657684 DOI: 10.1111/1744-7917.12501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2017] [Revised: 06/02/2017] [Accepted: 06/07/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Ommochrome is the major source for eye coloration of all insect species so far examined. Phenoxazinone synthetase (PHS) has always been regarded as the terminal step enzyme for ommochrome formation, which is encoded by cardinal or karmoisin genes. Our previous study indicated that the karmoisin ortholog gene (Nl-karmoisin) product in the brown planthopper (BPH) was a monocarboxylate transporter, while not a PHS. Here, based on full-length complementary DNA, the cardinal ortholog gene in BPH (Nl-cardinal) product was predicted to be a haem peroxidase rather than a PHS. We suggest for the first time that neither karmoisin nor cardinal encodes the PHS, but whether PHS participates in BPH eye pigmentation needs further research. Nymphal RNA interference (RNAi) experiments showed that knockdown Nl-cardinal transcript led the BPH ocelli and compound eye to color change from brown to red, while knockdown Nl-karmoisin only made the ocelli present the red phenotype. Notably, not only the Nl-cardinal transcript, dscd injection (Nl-cardinal targeting double-stranded DNA (dsRNA)) also significantly reduced the Nl-karmoisin transcript by 33.7%, while dska (Nl-karmoisin targeting dsRNA) injection did not significantly change the Nl-cardinal transcript. Considering the above RNAi and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction results, we propose that Nl-cardinal plays a more important role in ommochrome synthesis than Nl-karmoisin, and it may be an upstream gene of Nl-karmoisin. The present study suggested that both karmoisin and cardinal ortholog genes play a role in ommochrome synthesis in a hemimetabolous insect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu-Hua Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
| | - Ju Luo
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
| | - Bao-Jun Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
| | - Ai-Ying Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jian Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
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Brent CS, Hull JJ. RNA interference-mediated knockdown of eye coloration genes in the western tarnished plant bug (Lygus hesperus Knight). ARCHIVES OF INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY 2019; 100:e21527. [PMID: 30588650 DOI: 10.1002/arch.21527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Insect eye coloration arises from the accumulation of various pigments. A number of genes that function in the biosynthesis (vermilion, cinnabar, and cardinal) and importation (karmoisin, white, scarlet, and brown) of these pigments, and their precursors, have been identified in diverse species and used as markers for transgenesis and gene editing. To examine their suitability as visible markers in Lygus hesperus Knight (western tarnished plant bug), transcriptomic data were screened for sequences exhibiting homology with the Drosophila melanogaster proteins. Complete open reading frames encoding putative homologs for all seven genes were identified. Bioinformatic-based sequence and phylogenetic analyses supported initial annotations as eye coloration genes. Consistent with their proposed role, each of the genes was expressed in adult heads as well as throughout nymphal and adult development. Adult eyes of those injected with double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) for karmoisin, vermilion, cinnabar, cardinal, and scarlet were characterized by a red band along the medial margin extending from the rostral terminus to the antenna. In contrast, eyes of insects injected with dsRNAs for both white and brown were a uniform light brown. White knockdown also produced cuticular and behavioral defects. Based on its expression profile and robust visible phenotype, cardinal would likely prove to be the most suitable marker for developing gene editing methods in Lygus species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin S Brent
- USDA-ARS Arid Land Agricultural Center, Maricopa, Arizona
| | - J Joe Hull
- USDA-ARS Arid Land Agricultural Center, Maricopa, Arizona
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Functional analysis of the ABCs of eye color in Helicoverpa armigera with CRISPR/Cas9-induced mutations. Sci Rep 2017; 7:40025. [PMID: 28053351 PMCID: PMC5214861 DOI: 10.1038/srep40025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2016] [Accepted: 12/01/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Many insect pigments are localized in subcellular pigment granules, and transport of pigment precursors from the cytoplasm is accomplished by ABC proteins. Drosophila melanogaster has three half-transporter genes (white, scarlet, and brown, all affecting eye pigments) and Bombyx mori has a fourth (ok). The White, Brown, Scarlet and Ok proteins each have one transmembrane and one cytoplasmic domain and they heterodimerize to form functional transporters with different substrate specificities. We used CRISPR/Cas9 to create somatic and germ-line knockout mutations of these four genes in the noctuid moth Helicoverpa armigera. Somatic knockouts of white block pigmentation of the egg, first instar larva and adult eye, but germ-line knockouts of white are recessive lethal in the embryo. Knockouts of scarlet are viable and produce pigmentless first instar larvae and yellow adult eyes lacking xanthommatin. Knockouts of brown show no phenotypic effects on viability or pigmentation. Knockouts of ok are viable and produce translucent larval cuticle and black eyes. CRISPR/Cas9-induced mutations are a useful tool for analyzing how essential and non-essential genes interact to produce the diversity of insect pigmentation patterns found in nature.
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The ABCs of eye color in Tribolium castaneum: orthologs of the Drosophila white, scarlet, and brown Genes. Genetics 2015; 199:749-59. [PMID: 25555987 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.114.173971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
In Drosophila melanogaster, each of the three paralogous ABC transporters, White, Scarlet and Brown, is required for normal pigmentation of the compound eye. We have cloned the three orthologous genes from the beetle Tribolium castaneum. Conceptual translations of Tribolium white (Tcw), scarlet (Tcst), and brown (Tcbw) are 51, 48, and 32% identical to their respective Drosophila counterparts. We have identified loss-of-eye-pigment strains that bear mutations in Tcw and Tcst: the Tcw gene in the ivory (i) strain carries a single-base transversion, which leads to an E → D amino-acid substitution in the highly conserved Walker B motif, while the Tcst gene in the pearl (p) strain has a deletion resulting in incorporation of a premature stop codon. In light of these findings, the mutant strains i and p are herein renamed white(ivory) (w(i)) and scarlet(pearl) (st(p)), respectively. In addition, RNA inhibition of Tcw and Tcst recapitulates the mutant phenotypes, confirming the roles of these genes in normal eye pigmentation, while RNA interference of Tcbw provides further evidence that it has no role in eye pigmentation in Tribolium. We also consider the evolutionary implications of our findings.
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Insausti TC, Le Gall M, Lazzari CR. Oxidative stress, photodamage and the role of screening pigments in insect eyes. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2013; 216:3200-7. [PMID: 23661779 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.082818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Using red-eyed mutant triatomine bugs (Hemiptera: Reduvidae), we tested the hypothesis of an alternative function of insect screening pigments against oxidative stress. To test our hypothesis, we studied the morphological and physiological changes associated with the mutation. We found that wild-type eyes possess a great amount of brown and red screening pigment inside the primary and secondary pigment cells as well as in the retinular cells. Red-eyed mutants, however, have only scarce red granules inside the pigmentary cells. We then compared the visual sensitivity of red-eyed mutants and wild types by measuring the photonegative responses of insects reared in light:dark cycles [12 h:12 h light:dark (LD)] or constant darkness (DD). Finally, we analyzed both the impact of oxidative stress associated with blood ingestion and photodamage of UV light on the eye retina. We found that red-eyed mutants reared in DD conditions were the most sensitive to the light intensities tested. Retinae of LD-reared mutants were gradually damaged over the life cycle, while for DD-reared insects retinae were conserved intact. No retinal damage was observed in non-fed mutants exposed to UV light for 2 weeks, whereas insects fed on blood prior to UV exposure showed clear signs of retinal damage. Wild-type insects exposed to UV light showed a marked increase in the amount and density of screening pigments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Teresita C Insausti
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l'Insecte, UMR 7261 CNRS-Université François Rabelais, Tours, France
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Allen ML. Genetics of a sex-linked recessive red eye color mutant of the tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2013. [DOI: 10.4236/ojas.2013.32a001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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Martins GF, Serrão JE, Ramalho-Ortigão JM, Pimenta PFP. A comparative study of fat body morphology in five mosquito species. Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 2011; 106:742-7. [DOI: 10.1590/s0074-02762011000600015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2011] [Accepted: 06/17/2011] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
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