{"title":"Regulation of tick attachment and rapid engorgement via dopamine receptors in the Asian longhorned tick Haemaphysalis longicornis.","authors":"Seoyul Hwang, Donghun Kim","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104262","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104262","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Dopamine plays multifaceted roles in the physiology of insects and ticks, acting as a key neurotransmitter and modulator of various biological processes. In ticks, it plays a particularly important role in regulating salivary gland function, which is essential for successful tick feeding on hosts. Salivary secretion in ticks is orchestrated by the collection of saliva in the acinar lumen mediated by the dopamine receptor (D1) and the expulsion of collected saliva into the salivary duct mediated by the invertebrate specific D1-like dopamine receptor (InvD1L). However, the function of dopamine receptors in different feeding stages and other tissues remains unclear. In this study, D1 and InvD1L of Haemaphysalis longicornis (Haelo-D1 and Haelo-InvD1L, respectively) were found to be involved in tick attachment and the rapid phase of blood feeding. Both receptors were identified and profiled in the synganglion, salivary glands, and midgut of H. longicornis females across different feeding stages. Functional analyses revealed that both receptors were activated by dopamine in a concentration-dependent manner with distinct sensitivities. RNA interference (RNAi) targeting these receptors significantly reduced dopamine-mediated salivation and delayed tick attachment and blood feeding. Furthermore, RNAi prolonged rapid engorgement phases and reduced the final body weight of replete ticks. These results highlight the crucial roles of D1 and InvD1L in regulating salivary secretion in ixodid ticks and facilitating their attachment and rapid engorgement, thereby offering potential targets for novel tick control strategies aimed at disrupting feeding and reducing pathogen transmission.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":" ","pages":"104262"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143035511","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Cis-regulation of the CYP6CS1 gene and its role in mediating cross-resistance in a pymetrozine-resistant strain of Nilaparvata lugens.","authors":"Pin-Xuan Lin, Yu-Xuan Peng, Ji-Yang Xing, Zhao-Yu Liu, Fang-Rui Guo, Joshua A Thia, Cong-Fen Gao, Shun-Fan Wu","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104261","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104261","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Pymetrozine is currently one of the primary insecticides used to control the brown planthopper, Nilaparvata lugens Stål (Hemiptera: Delphacidae), but the long-term effectiveness of this chemical is threatened by growing issues of resistance. Previous studies in a laboratory selected strain of N. lugens, Pym-R, have shown that resistance to pymetrozine can evolve without target-site mutations. A key candidate gene identified is the cytochrome P450 gene CYP6CS1, which is overexpressed in the resistant Pym-R strain compared to the laboratory susceptible strain, Pym-S. In this study, we provide a deeper characterization of the regulatory mechanism and phenotypic effects of CYP6CS1 by comparing the resistant and susceptible variants of this gene. Using artificial constructs in Luciferase activity assays, we elucidate the role of indels in the overexpression of CYP6CS1 in the resistant strain. Additionally, transgenic Drosophila experiments also revealed that the CYP6CS1 gene not only contributes to resistance against pymetrozine, but is able to confer moderate to low cross-resistance to several other pesticides. This research provides vital insights into the possible genetic mechanisms that may contribute to pymetrozine resistance in field populations. Future work will aim to examine the relevance of CYP6CS1 variation in the field with the aim of developing diagnostic markers of resistance.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":" ","pages":"104261"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143035510","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
B Zeng, A J Hayward, A Pym, A Duarte, W T Garrood, S-F Wu, C-F Gao, C Zimmer, M Mallott, T G E Davies, R Nauen, C Bass, B J Troczka
{"title":"Differentially spliced mitochondrial CYP419A1 contributes to ethiprole resistance in Nilaparvata lugens.","authors":"B Zeng, A J Hayward, A Pym, A Duarte, W T Garrood, S-F Wu, C-F Gao, C Zimmer, M Mallott, T G E Davies, R Nauen, C Bass, B J Troczka","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104260","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104260","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The brown planthopper Nilaparvata lugens is one of the most economically important pests of cultivated rice in Southeast Asia. Extensive use of insecticide treatments, such as imidacloprid, fipronil and ethiprole, has resulted in the emergence of multiple resistant strains of N. lugens. Previous investigation of the mechanisms of resistance to imidacloprid and ethiprole demonstrated that overexpression and qualitative changes in the cytochrome P450 gene CYP6ER1 lead to enhanced metabolic detoxification of these compounds. Here, we present the identification of a secondary mechanism enhancing ethiprole resistance mediated by differential splicing and overexpression of CYP419A1, a planthopper-specific, mitochondrial P450 gene. Although metabolic resistance to insecticides is usually mediated by overexpression of P450 genes belonging to either CYP 3 or 4 clades, we validate the protective effect of over-expression of CYP419A1, in vivo, using transgenic Drosophila melanogaster. Additionally, we report some unusual features of both the CYP419A1 gene locus and protein, which include, altered splicing associated with resistance, a non-canonical heme-binding motif and an extreme 5' end extension of the open reading frame. These results provide insight into the molecular mechanisms underpinning resistance to insecticides and have applied implications for the control of a highly damaging crop pest.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":" ","pages":"104260"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143021532","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Zhiming Yang, Mengqing Deng, Wenxiu Wang, Tianxiang Xiao, Xiaodan Huang, Xinyu Zhao, Xiyue Xu, Jun Li, Zhongxiang Sun, Kai Lu
{"title":"Exploring the adaptation mechanism of Spodoptera litura to xanthotoxin: Insights from transcriptional responses and CncC signaling pathway-mediated UGT detoxification.","authors":"Zhiming Yang, Mengqing Deng, Wenxiu Wang, Tianxiang Xiao, Xiaodan Huang, Xinyu Zhao, Xiyue Xu, Jun Li, Zhongxiang Sun, Kai Lu","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104259","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104259","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>During the long-term interaction between plants and phytophagous insects, plants generate diverse plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) to defend against insects, whereas insects persistently cause harm to plants by detoxifying PSMs. Xanthotoxin is an insect-resistant PSM that is widely found in plants. However, the understanding of detoxification mechanism of xanthotoxin in insects is still limited at present. In this study, RNA-seq analysis showed that uridine diphosphate (UDP)-glycosyltransferases (UGTs) and cap 'n' collar isoform C (CncC) signaling pathway were specifically retrieved from the midgut and fat body of xanthotoxin-administrated Spodoptera litura larvae. The larvae were sensitive to xanthotoxin when the transcriptional expression and enzyme activity of UGTs were inhibited. Bacteria co-expressing UGT had a high survival rate after exposure to xanthotoxin and displayed high metabolic activity to xanthotoxin, which indicated that UGTs were involved in xanthotoxin detoxification. As the pivotal transcription factors, RNA interference against CncC and its partner, muscle aponeurosis fibromatosis isoform K (MafK), reduced larval tolerance to xanthotoxin as well as UGT expressional levels. Dual-luciferase reporter assay demonstrated that UGT promoter activity was activated by CncC and MafK, and was suppressed once CncC/MafK binding site was mutated. This study revealed that CncC signaling pathway regulated UGT transcriptional expression to mediate xanthotoxin detoxification in S. litura, which will facilitate a better understanding of the adaptive mechanism of phytophagous insects to host plants and provide more valuable insecticide targets for pest control.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":" ","pages":"104259"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142997497","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Luyao Peng, Cui Zhang, Jinjin Ren, Yaxin Liu, Yanyuan Bao
{"title":"Troponin C is required for copulation and ovulation in Nilaparvata lugens.","authors":"Luyao Peng, Cui Zhang, Jinjin Ren, Yaxin Liu, Yanyuan Bao","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104258","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104258","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Troponin C (TnC) is a calcium-binding subunit of the troponin complex that regulates muscle contraction in animals. However, the physiological roles of TnC, especially in insect development and reproduction, remain largely unknown. We identified seven TnC genes encoding four EF-hand motif protein in the rice pest, the brown planthopper Nilaparvata lugens. This species has emerged as an ideal model insect to study gene functions because of the availability of its complete genome sequence and of the susceptibility to RNA interference (RNAi). RT-qPCR combined with in situ hybridization showed that TnCⅠ was highly expressed in the bursa copulatrix of ovaries. RNAi-mediated knockdown of TnCⅠ in 2nd-to 5th-instar nymphs generated significantly lethal deficits, and also led to copulation and ovulation failure in adult females, although males displayed appropriate mating behavior. These new findings provide insights into understanding the physiological functions of TnCⅠ in the survival of, and female reproductive success, in N. lugens. Thus, this gene could be used as a target to explore methods for pest control of this important species.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":"177 ","pages":"104258"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142997496","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yang Wang, Qiao Jin, Michael R Kanost, Haobo Jiang
{"title":"CLIPA protein pairs function as cofactors for prophenoloxidase activation in Anopheles gambiae.","authors":"Yang Wang, Qiao Jin, Michael R Kanost, Haobo Jiang","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104254","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104254","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Insect prophenoloxidases (proPO) are activated during immune responses by a proPO activating protease (PAP) in the presence of a high molecular weight cofactor assembled from serine protease homologs (SPH) that lack proteolytic activity. PAPs and the SPHs have a similar architecture, with an amino-terminal clip domain and a carboxyl-terminal protease domain. The SPHs belong to CLIPA subfamily of SP-related proteins. In Manduca sexta, a well characterized biochemical model system for insect immunity, the functional SPH cofactor contains one molecule each from two SPH subfamilies, SPH-I and SPH-II. In Anopheles gambiae, three SPHI-SPHII pairs (CLIPs A4-A6, A4-A7Δ, and A4-A12) were previously reported as cofactors for CLIPB9-mediated activation of proPO2 and proPO7. In this study, we produced recombinant proteins for two splicing variants of CLIPA7, proCLIPA7s (s for short), proCLIPA7f (f for full-length) and proCLIPA14. We cleaved each along with proCLIPA4 using M. sexta PAP3 and found that the CLIPA pairs A4-A7s and A4-A14 are better than A4-A7f in generating highly active PO2 or PO7. CLIPA7f and CLIPA7s, products of alternative splicing, have different strengths as cofactors in combination with CLIPA4. Because mRNA for CLIPA7f is expressed at a significantly higher level than CLIPA7s, cofactors with the weaker combination A4-A7f may predominate in hemolymph, resulting in a potential dampening effect on proPO activation as a regulatory mechanism for altering the strength of the melanization response. A. gambiae CLIPB10x<sub>a</sub> is involved in proPO activation but its role as a PAP was not established using mosquito proPOs. Here we showed that factor Xa-treated proCLIPB10<sub>Xa</sub> activated proCLIPs A7s, A7f, A14, A4 (poorly), and proPO2. At higher concentrations, CLIPB10x<sub>a</sub> efficiently activated proPO2 in the absence of a cofactor, but at low concentrations it required a CLIPA cofactor, suggesting that highly active PO2 can be generated at low concentration of CLIPB10 in cooperation with an SPH cofactor in vivo. Using cofactors generated by PAP3, we demonstrated the order of efficacy for proPO2 activation by B10<sub>Xa</sub> is A4-A6 > A4-A14 or A4-A7s > A4-A7f > A4-A12. This agrees with their relative strengths as cofactors for proPO2 and proPO7 activation by M. sexta PAP3. In summary, we further developed an in vitro assay system to elucidate biochemical details of the complex process of proPO activation in A. gambiae.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":" ","pages":"104254"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142969021","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockout of Tektin 4-like gene (TEKT4L) causes male sterility of Cydia pomonella.","authors":"Zihan Wei, Chang Wang, Xinyue Zhang, Yuntong Lv, Yuting Li, Ping Gao, Xueqing Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104257","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibmb.2025.104257","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The sterile insect technique (SIT) is a well-established and environmentally benign method for population control. Identifying genes that regulate insect fertility while preserving growth and development is crucial for implementing a novel SIT-based pest management approach utilizing CRISPR/Cas9 to target these genes for genetic manipulation. Tektin (TEKT), an essential alpha-helical protein pivotal in sperm formation due to its role in cilia and flagella assembly, has garnered attention. In this study, we identified 7 TEKT genes in the testis of Cydia pomonella, a globally invasive fruit pest. Notably, Tektin4-like (TEKT4L) displayed the highest expression level in male adult especially the testes, suggesting its significance in reproductive processes. By utilizing CRISPR/Cas9 technology to knockout TEKT4L, male sterility was induced, showcasing dominant inherited. When wild-type (WT) females mated with TEKT4L<sup>-/-</sup> males, eggs laying proceeded normally, but the hatching rate was dramatically reduced, with only 15.49% progressing to the eyespot stage and 68.86% failing to develop normally. The reproductive fitness of TEKT4L<sup>-/-</sup> males was robust enough to facilitate the transmission of genetic modifications efficiently within the C.pomonella population, yielding a small number of viable offspring. Subsequent cage trials demonstrated the effectiveness of this population in suppressing laboratory populations of C.pomonella, achieving notable results with a relatively low release ratio (TEKT4L<sup>-/-</sup>♂ : WT♂: WT♀=5:1:5). Consequently, the targeted disruption of the TEKT4L gene holds promise as a fundamental element in a novel pest control strategy against C. pomonella.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":" ","pages":"104257"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142930219","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The parasitoid Exorista sorbillans exploits host silkworm encapsulation to build respiratory funnel for survival.","authors":"Qian Xu, Jialei Lu, Xinran Gu, Fupeng Chi, Yue Zhao, Fanchi Li, Xuejian Jiang, Bing Li, Jing Wei","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104255","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104255","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Insect parasitoids have evolved sophisticated strategies to evade or modulate host immunity for parasitic infections. The precise mechanisms by which parasitoids counteract host anti-parasitic responses are poorly defined. Here we report a novel immune evasion strategy employed by the parasitoid Exorista sorbillans (Diptera: Tachinidae) to establish infection. We find that E. sorbillans larva construct a respiratory funnel that gradually increases in size as development progresses. This respiratory funnel, which connect to the parasitoid invasion aperture on the host silkworm epidermis, proves essential for E. sorbillans development, as sealing the invasion aperture results in complete mortality of larval parasitoids. Our investigation reveals that E. sorbillans infection reduces both host silkworms' hemocyte counts and the expression of hemocyte-specific genes, while simultaneously inducing varying degrees of host silkworm encapsulation at different parasitic stages. Nevertheless, more complete inhibition of host silkworm encapsulation through RNAi leads to parasitoid's defective respiratory funnel formation and increased mortality rates of the parasitoid. Further observations demonstrate that this suppressed encapsulation response triggers an enhanced activation of Toll/IMD pathways in the host silkworm. Take together, we show that E. sorbillans may utilize host silkworm encapsulation to construct a respiratory funnel for both respiration and immune evasion. Our findings provide new insights into the evasion tactics employed by parasitoids win out in the ongoing parasite-host evolutionary arms race.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":" ","pages":"104255"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142913359","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Histone deacetylases synergistically regulate juvenile hormone signaling in the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti.","authors":"Sharath Chandra Gaddelapati, Subba Reddy Palli","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104256","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104256","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Controlling Aedes aegypti mosquitoes is crucial for managing mosquito-transmitted diseases like dengue, zika, chikungunya, and yellow fever. One of the efficient methods to control mosquitoes is to block their progression from the larval to the adult stage. Juvenile hormones (JH) maintain the larval stage and ensure proper developmental timing for transitioning from larval-pupal-adult stages. Our previous studies showed that histone deacetylases (HDACs) regulate JH signaling and metamorphosis in the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum. However, the role of HDACs in regulating JH signaling in Ae. aegypti mosquito is unknown. To investigate the role of HDACs in JH signaling, we knockdown each HDAC coding gene in Aag-2 cells derived from Ae. aegypti. Knockdown of HDAC1, HDAC4, and HDAC11 increased the expression of the JH primary response gene, Krüppel homolog 1 (Kr-h1), which represses the larval-pupal metamorphosis. Moreover, the simultaneous knockdown of these three HDACs synergistically increased the Kr-h1 promoter activity and its expression, mimicking JH action in inducing Kr-h1. Nevertheless, each HDAC regulates the transcription of different sets of genes, except for a few common genes involved in JH signaling. Furthermore, the knockdown of these HDACs in Ae. aegypti larvae caused different phenotypes apart from delayed pupation: HDAC1 knockdown caused larval growth retardation, body shrinkage, and eventual death; HDAC4 knockdown led to incomplete head capsule shedding after metamorphosis; and HDAC11 knockdown caused higher pupal mortality. Our data demonstrates functional overlap and distinct functions for HDAC1, HDAC4, and HDAC11 in modulating JH signaling, with each HDAC having a unique role in mosquito development.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":" ","pages":"104256"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142913338","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Diet influence on male sexual maturation through interplay between insulin signaling and juvenile hormone in insects.","authors":"Evan Force, Claudia Alvarez, Annabelle Fuentes, Annick Maria, Françoise Bozzolan, Stéphane Debernard","doi":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104252","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104252","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In animals, sexual maturation coincides with the development of sexual behaviors and reproductive system. These developmental events are influenced by diet and governed by endocrine signals. Here, for the first time in insects, we explored functional links between nutrition and juvenile hormone (JH) in the male reproductive physiology through the insulin signaling pathway (ISP) acting as a transducer of nutritional signals. We turned to the male moth Agrotis ipsilon for which sexual maturation, including accessory sex glands (ASGs) development concomitantly with antennal lobes (ALs) maturation for female sex pheromone processing and display of sexual behavior, is known to be JH- and diet-dependent. Indeed, a diet rich in sugars with sodium was previously shown to accelerate sexual maturation, which was achieved from the third day of adult life. In this study, we demonstrated that such a diet raised i) the expression of JH signaling actors (Methoprene-tolerant, Taiman, and Krüppel homolog 1) in ALs and ASGs, ii) the biosynthesis and circulating levels of JH, and iii) the expression of both insulin receptor (InR) and insulin-like peptides (ILPs) in corpora allata (CAs) and brain respectively. Insulin injection raised JH biosynthesis following increased HMG-CoA reductase expression in CAs; opposite effects were induced in InR-deficient males. Thus, we highlighted that promoting effects of a diet composed of sugars with sodium on male sexual maturation results from an early induction of ISP causing an increase in JH biosynthesis followed by a potentiation of JH actions on the development of ASGs and ALs in A. ipsilon.</p>","PeriodicalId":330,"journal":{"name":"Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":" ","pages":"104252"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142862822","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}