Identification and Sequence Determination of mRNAs Detected in Dormant (Diapausing) Aedes triseriatus Mosquito Embryos

Abstract

Many insects survive adverse climatic conditions in a dormant state known as diapause. In this study, we identified and sequenced several mRNAs in diapausing Aedes triseriatus mosquito embryos. Using reverse-transcription PCR and 5′ RACE, we identified a 995-nucleotide cDNA that encodes a 259-amino acid protein of unknown function. This putative protein displays strong sequence similarity to Drosophila mela-nogaster (95%), human (87%), Caenorhabditis elegans (86%) and yeast (81%) counterparts. The second identified full-length cDNA consists of 624 nucleotides and encodes a 174-amino acid protein of unknown function. This putative protein displays significant sequence similarity to D. melanogaster (68%), human (59%), plant (57%) and yeast (49%) counterparts. We also detected a number of cDNA fragments that exhibited significant sequence similarity to a mitochondrial cytochrome C oxidase subunit, human N33 protein (a potential human prostate tumor suppressor), 18S and 28S ribosomal RNAs, protein disulfide-isomerase, and guanine nucleotide-binding protein.