Molecular characterization and developmental expression of the gene encoding the prothoracicotropic hormone in the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua  

作　　者：XU Jun1,SU JianYa3, SHEN JinLiang3 & XU WeiHua1,2 1 Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China 2 State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol and Institute of Entomology, School of Life Sciences, Zhongshan University, Guangzhou 510275, China 3 Department of Plant Protection, Nanjing Agriculture University, Nanjing 210095, China 

出　　处：《Science China(Life Sciences)》2007年第4期466-472,共7页中国科学（生命科学英文版）

基　　金：Supported by the National Basic Research Program of the Ministry of Science and Technology, People’s Republic of China (Grant No. 2006CB102001);The nucleotide sequence data reported in this article have been submitted to Gen-Bank and have been assigned the accession number AY628763

摘　　要：Prothoracicotropic hormone (PTTH), a neuropeptide hormone stimulating the prothoracic glands to synthesize ecdysone, plays an important role in regulating postembryonic development in insects. The cDNA encoding PTTH was isolated and sequenced from the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Spe). The deduced a?mino acid sequence is composed of a signal peptide, a peptide (65 amino acids) of un-known function, and a mature PTTH molecule (111 amino acids). The Spe-PTTH shows similarities (45.5%―70.3%) to other known PTTHs reported in Lepidoptera species, but 7 cysteine r?esidues and the hydrophobic regions were conserved. Whole-mount immunocytochemistry by using an antiserum against recombinant Helicoverpa armigera PTTH showed that Spe-PTTH was synthesized in two pairs of neurosecretory cells in the S. exigua brain. Northern blot analysis demonstrates the presence of a 1.2-kb transcript in the brain. The Spe-PTTH mRNA is detectable at high levels at the wandering larval stage, early pupal stage, and pharate adult stage, suggesting that the Spe-PTTH gene might be corre-lated with molting, metamorphosis, and reproduction.Prothoracicotropic hormone (PTTH), a neuropeptide hormone stimulating the prothoracic glands to synthesize ecdysone, plays an important role in regulating postembryonic development in insects. The cDNA encoding PTTH was isolated and sequenced from the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Spe). The deduced a?mino acid sequence is composed of a signal peptide, a peptide (65 amino acids) of un- known function, and a mature PTTH molecule (111 amino acids). The Spe-PTTH shows similarities (45.5%―70.3%) to other known PTTHs reported in Lepidoptera species, but 7 cysteine residues and the hydrophobic regions were conserved. Whole-mount immunocytochemistry by using an antiserum against recombinant Helicoverpa armigera PTTH showed that Spe-PTTH was synthesized in two pairs of neurosecretory cells in the S. exigua brain. Northern blot analysis demonstrates the presence of a 1.2-kb transcript in the brain. The Spe-PTTH mRNA is detectable at high levels at the wandering larval stage, early pupal stage, and pharate adult stage, suggesting that the Spe-PTTH gene might be corre-lated with molting, metamorphosis, and reproduction.

关 键 词：prothoracicotropic HORMONE molecular characterization Northern blot WHOLE-MOUNT IMMUNOCYTOCHEMISTRY SPODOPTERA EXIGUA 

分 类 号：S433[农业科学—农业昆虫与害虫防治] Q963[农业科学—植物保护]