First transcriptional survey of the Malpighian tubules of giant mealworm, Zophobas morio (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

Abstract

ABSTRACT. The Malpighian tubules play a key role in insect osmoregulation. Although a transcriptional analysis has been done for the Malpighian tubules in Drosophila melanogaster (Diptera), no functional genomics analysis has yet been carried out for any Coleoptera species. Recently, we constructed a cDNA library from Malpighian tubules of larval Zophobas morio, a close relative of Tribolium castaneum, and cloned the cDNA for an AMP/CoA-ligase with luciferase-like enzyme properties. Using this cDNA library, we randomly isolated, partially sequenced and analyzed ca. 540 clones, obtaining the first transcriptional profile of the most representative expressed genes, and associated them with their possible biological functions. A high percentage of mitochondrial genes was found, which is consistent with the high metabolic activity required by this organ during the formation of primary urine. Common transcripts included those for enzymes involved in osmoregulation, such as solute transporters and ATPases, and in detoxification and excretion, such as cytochrome

Comparative physiology of Malpighian tubules: form and function

“…11,27 Genomic and proteomic analysis studies may elucidate their intracellular signaling mechanisms, 81,82 regulating the immune response, 83 in addition to other functions of MTs, as their relationship with the bioluminescence mechanism in some insects. 84,85 The results indicate that MTs can be used for the evaluation of biomarkers, at the cellular level, in toxicological studies, especially studies done with sublethal doses and concentrations of chemicals. The various roles played by MTs reflect the interactions that organisms have with the environment in which they live.…”

Gene expression profiles in Malpighian tubules of the vector leafhopper Psammotettix striatus (L.) revealed regional functional diversity and heterogeneity

“…MTs have been also found to perform key functions in stress response, e.g., oxidative, desiccate and osmotic (salt/ionic) tolerance [ 9 , 11 – 13 ]. Moreover, there are some specialized functions involved in MTs of some insects, such as producing silk [ 14 ], secreting protective material (such as brochosome) [ 15 – 18 ], storing mineralized granules [ 19 , 20 ] and emitting bioluminescence [ 8 , 21 , 22 ]. In some insect species, MTs are also involved in carbohydrate transport and metabolism, development and reproduction [ 5 , 23 – 26 ].…”

Comparative transcriptomic analysis of larval and adult Malpighian tubules from the cotton bollworm Helicoverpa armigera

“…As the “kidneys” of insects, Malpighian tubules (MTs) play important physiological roles (Beyenbach et al ., ; Beyenbach & Piermarini, ). For example, MTs express abundant detoxification‐related genes (Daborn et al ., ; Dow & Davies, ; Yang et al ., ; Silva et al ., ; Esquivel et al ., ) and they are able to excrete various xenobiotics actively, such as dyes and plant secondary metabolites (Dow, ). MTs can sense bacterial attack and mount subsequent immune responses (McGettigan et al ., ), while immunity‐related genes are enriched in these organs (Dow & Davies, ; Esquivel et al ., ).…”

“…For example, MTs express abundant detoxification-related genes (Daborn et al, 2002;Dow & Davies, 2006;Yang et al, 2007; Correspondence: Xing-Hui Qiu, State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China. Tel: +86 10 64807231; fax: +86 10 64807099; email: qiuxh@ioz.ac.cn Silva et al, 2015;Esquivel et al, 2016) and they are able to excrete various xenobiotics actively, such as dyes and plant secondary metabolites (Dow, 2009). MTs can sense bacterial attack and mount subsequent immune responses (McGettigan et al, 2005), while immunity-related genes are enriched in these organs (Dow & Davies, 2006;Esquivel et al, 2016).…”

“…Transcriptomic studies are powerful tools for exploring the molecular bases of biological processes. The transcriptome of MTs has been investigated in several insect species, including D. melanogaster (Wang et al, 2004;Chintapalli et al, 2013;Huylmans and Parsch, 2014), Aedes aegypti (Li et al, 2017), Anopheles gambiae (Overend et al, 2015), Aedes albopictus (Esquivel et al, 2014(Esquivel et al, , 2016, Zophobas morio (Silva et al, 2015) and Bombyx mori (Kajawara et al, 2009;Zhong et al, 2013). Although transcriptomic analyses have been conducted for some specific tissues of H. armigera such as antenna (Zhang et al, 2015b), no such investigation has yet been performed for MTs of H. armigera.…”