De novo transcriptome analysis and identification of genes associated with immunity, detoxification and energy metabolism from the fat body of the tephritid gall fly, Procecidochares utilis

Abstract

The fat body, a multifunctional organ analogous to the liver and fat tissue of vertebrates, plays an important role in insect life cycles. The fat body is involved in protein storage, energy metabolism, elimination of xenobiotics, and production of immunity regulator-like proteins. However, the molecular mechanism of the fat body’s physiological functions in the tephritid stem gall-forming fly, Procecidochares utilis, are still unknown. In this study, we performed transcriptome analysis of the fat body of P. utilis using Illumina sequencing technology. In total, 3.71 G of clean reads were obtained and assembled into 30,559 unigenes, with an average length of 539 bp. Among those unigenes, 21,439 (70.16%) were annotated based on sequence similarity to proteins in NCBI’s non-redundant protein sequence database (Nr). Sequences were also compared to NCBI’s non-redundant nucleotide sequence database (Nt), a manually curated and reviewed protein sequence database (SwissProt), and KEGG and gene ontology annotations were applied to better understand the functions of these unigenes. A comparative analysis was performed to identify unigenes related to detoxification, immunity and energy metabolism. Many unigenes involved in detoxification were identified, including 50 unigenes of putative cytochrome P450s (P450s), 18 of glutathione S-transferases (GSTs), 35 of carboxylesterases (CarEs) and 26 of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters. Many unigenes related to immunity were identified, including 17 putative serpin genes, five peptidoglycan recognition proteins (PGRPs) and four lysozyme genes. In addition, unigenes potentially involved in energy metabolism, including 18 lipase genes, five fatty acid synthase (FAS) genes and six elongases of very long chain fatty acid (ELOVL) genes, were identified. This transcriptome improves our genetic understanding of P. utilis and the identification of a numerous transcripts in the fat body of P. utilis offer a series of valuable molecular resources for future studies on the functions of these genes.

Transcriptional responses are oriented towards different components of the rearing environment in two Drosophila sibling species

“…CYP enzymes are fundamental elements in insect adaptation due to their role in metabolism and detoxification [ 26 ]. This function is shared especially with the insect-specific Delta and Epsilon classes of GSTs [ 27 ] and with UGTs that play a role in detoxification and resistance by regulating bioactivity and solubility of different compounds [ 28 ]. These genes were similarly overexpressed in media containing alkaloids in both species.…”

Nutritional Properties of Larval Epidermis and Meat of the Edible Insect Clanis bilineata tsingtauica (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae)

“…PA is present in C. bilineata tsingtauica and C. atrata , but the ratios showed that the bioavailability of minerals in these insects is superior to G. max . It is important to note that nutrition is distributed throughout the insect body, including the fat body in the abdomen and beneath the epidermis [ 70 , 71 ]. Based on our results, we advocate that the traditional way of eating C. bilineata tsingtauica in Lianyungang should be changed, and recommend the consumption of the entire larvae as is common in Xuzhou and Shandong.…”

Identification and Characterization of CYP6 Family Genes from the Oriental Fruit Moth (Grapholita molesta) and Their Responses to Insecticides

“…For example, with this technology, 120 CYP genes were identified in Pardosa pseudoannulata [ 25 ]. Transcriptome analysis of the fat body of Procecidochares utilis revealed many unigenes involved in detoxification, including 50 unigenes of putative CYPs (P450s) in this organism [ 26 ]. We have previously reported 77 unigenes of putative CYPs in G. molesta , which included 13 unigenes in the CYP6 family [ 27 ], the biochemical functions of which are largely associated with the metabolism of xenobiotics [ 21 ].…”