Cold acclimation triggers lipidomic and metabolic adjustments in the spotted wing drosophilaDrosophila suzukii(Matsumara)

Abstract

Chronic cold exposure is detrimental to chill susceptible insects that may accumulate chill injuries. To cope with deleterious effects of cold temperature, insects employ a variety of physiological strategies and metabolic adjustments, such as production of cryoprotectants, or remodeling of cellular membranes. Cold tolerance is a key element determining the fundamental niche of species. Because Drosophila suzukii is an invasive fruit pest, originating from East Asia, knowledge about its thermal biology is urgently needed. Physiological mechanisms underlying cold tolerance plasticity remain poorly understood in this species. Here, we explored metabolic and lipidomic modifications associated with the acquisition of cold tolerance in D. suzukii using Omics technologies (LC- and GC-MS/MS). In both cold-acclimated males and females, we observed physiological changes consistent with homeoviscous/homeophasic adaptation of membranes: reshuffling of phospholipid head groups and increasing unsaturation rate of fatty acids. Modification of fatty acids unsaturation were also observed in triacylglycerides, which would likely increase accessibility of lipid reserves. At the metabolic level, we observed clear-cut differentiation of metabolic profiles with cold-acclimated metabotypes showing accumulation of several potential cryoprotectants (sugars and amino acids). Metabolic pathway analyses indicated a remodeling of various processes, including purine metabolism and aminoacyl tRNA biosynthesis. These data provide a large-scale characterization of lipid rearrangements and metabolic pathway modifications in D. suzukii in response to cold acclimation and contribute to characterizing the strategies used by this species to modulate cold tolerance.

A high‐quality carabid genome assembly provides insights into beetle genome evolution and cold adaptation

“…Cellular ion homeostasis, although also crucial for ensuring the function of neuronal signal transduction and muscle contraction (Lubawy et al, 2020; MacMillan et al, 2014; Pivovarov et al, 2019), was not associated with gene family expansions in N. riversi . Similarly, changes to the structure of the phospholipid bilayer, which is a common strategy to avoid damage to the cytoplasmic membrane and internal membranes (Enriquez & Colinet, 2019; Holmstrup et al, 2002), was not found among the gene expansion events. There are three possible reasons we do not find evidence for these physiological changes.…”

Dynamic transcriptome profiling exploring cold tolerance in forensically important blow fly, Aldrichina grahami (Diptera: Calliphoridae)

“…Previous studies have shown that the properties of the insect cuticle may be determined by the complex structural interactions between chitin polysaccharides and cuticular proteins (CPs) [29]. Moreover, extreme cold environment can affect cellular membrane integrity by inducing the transition of membrane's phospholipid bilayer [30]. These changes in membrane fluidity alter function and activity of membrane-bound enzyme [31,32].…”

“…And there has little changed in their state, organ development, and tissue differentiation [35]. However, their physiological metabolic processes are still active, such as energy metabolism, endocrine regulation, lipid metabolism and sugar metabolism [30,36,37]. In energy metabolism, it has been proved that lowmolecular-weight sugars and polyols are vital intermediate metabolites and energy substances in many insect species in a cold environment [18].…”

Mitochondrial-Derived Peptide MOTS-c Increases Adipose Thermogenic Activation to Promote Cold Adaptation

“…Cold acclimation is a potential strategy to allow adaptation to cold environments and it attenuates cold-induced impairments [4]. Prolonged or intermittent repeated exposure to low temperatures is a way to improve cold acclimation and enhance the ability of cold adaptation [2,5,6]. However, the therapeutic strategy to increase the ability of cold adaptation is still less studied.…”