蜕皮激素对家蚕卵黄原蛋白基因表达的调控

蜕皮激素（20-hydroxy ecdysone,20E）是由前胸腺分泌的能调节节肢动物昆虫纲、甲壳纲等动物蜕皮的激素. 家蚕属于完全变态昆虫,一生经历卵、幼虫、蛹、成虫四个发育时期. 20E在家蚕发育过程中有不可替代的作用. 本研究通过酶联免疫吸附反应（ELISA）测定家蚕变态期前后血淋巴中20E滴度,发现在卵黄原蛋白基因 (Bombyx mori vitellogenin, BmVg) 高量表达前的雌雄血淋巴中20E含量没有明显差异,但含量变化趋势与BmVg表达趋势相一致. 用20E注射上蔟后60 h的家蚕和添食5龄家蚕, 能诱导雌性和雄性脂肪体中BmVg表达和蛋白合成. 调查处理后的家蚕所产卵中的卵黄磷蛋白（BmVn）含量及重量,发现蚕卵中BmVn含量及蚕卵重量都明显增加|本研究还通过脂肪体体外培养,证明了20E是直接作用于脂肪体来诱导BmVg的表达. 本研究结果表明,20E是通过诱导脂肪体中BmVg的转录来增加蚕卵中BmVn积累,从而最终使得蚕卵重量也相应增加.     

蜕皮激素与丝蛋白合成:植源性蜕皮激素对家蚕后部丝腺核酸代谢的影响

给家蚕五龄幼虫添食植源性蜕皮激素(以下简称MH),对后部丝腺的核酸代谢都有直接影响,但由此引起的效应却是复杂的,与添食的时期和剂量以及蚕品种等因素有关。五龄每天低剂量(夏蚕0.5微克/头,春蚕2微克/头)连续添食和前期一次添食(2—4微克/头)对后丝腺RNA的合成都有明显的促进作用,并且RNA含量增长高峰是在五龄中期以后;每天较高剂量连续添食和中期一次添食,都表现为抑制作用。添食MH对后部丝腺DNA合成的影响与RNA的变化不尽一致;在每天0.5微克/头连续添食区表现出强烈的促进作用,而其余各处理区都出现明显的抑制。由此认为MH能直接作用于遗传物质DNA,通过调节有关基因的复制或者转录速度,从而对丝蛋白的生物合成产生某种影响。     

蜕皮激素与丝蛋白合成:植源性蜕皮激素对家蚕丝腺蛋白质合成中3H标记甘氨酸参入活性的影响

用³H标记甘氨酸参人法证明:家蚕后部丝腺中丝心蛋白的大量合成, 是在五龄4日以后, 熟蚕时合成活性最高;中部丝腺中丝胶蛋白的大量合成, 是在五龄5日以后, 以熟前一日合成活性最高.五龄每日低剂量连续添食和前期一次添食植源性蜕皮激素(简称MH), 能促进后部丝腺对³H标记甘氨酸的吸收, 显著提高丝心蛋白的合成活性, 而抑制中部丝腺的吸收, 使丝胶蛋白的合成活性明显下降.本试验结果为阐明外源MH对丝蛋白合成的调节机理提供了直接的证据.     

家蚕类泛素化翻译后修饰蛋白NEDD8的cDNA克隆、表达分析和亚细胞定位

【目的】NEDD8是一种重要的蛋白质翻译后修饰蛋白,对底物蛋白的功能具有重要的调节作用。本研究旨在探索家蚕Bombyx mori中NEDD8的功能。【方法】利用RT-PCR技术,从家蚕Bm N细胞中克隆了家蚕NEDD8完整的开放阅读框。通过实时荧光定量PCR(qRT-PCR)技术检测家蚕NEDD8在不同发育阶段、5龄第3天幼虫不同组织中以及Bm NPV感染Bm N细胞后的相对表达量。通过构建GFP融合表达的重组Bm NPV(B.mori nucleopolyherovirus)感染家蚕Bm N细胞,在共聚焦显微镜下观察NEDD8在细胞中分布情况,用GFP抗体进行Western blot验证。【结果】克隆获得了NEDD8基因。序列分析表明,家蚕NEDD8高度保守,与家蚕泛素蛋白氨基酸序列一致性最高。qRT-PCR分析结果表明,NEDD8在家蚕的不同组织中均有表达,其中头部中表达量最高,其次是丝腺中,而在精巢和卵巢中表达量最低;在家蚕5龄第3天幼虫始到化蛹后第3天NEDD8的表达量开始逐渐增加,化蛾后降至低水平;在家蚕杆状病毒感染Bm N细胞的早期和极晚期NEDD8的表达量都有明显增加。GFP-NEDD8融合表达定位显示NEDD8在Bm N细胞内普遍存在,分布于整个细胞中,并且在感染48 h后存在细胞质内的聚集现象。【结论】NEDD8编码序列在物种间高度保守;NEDD8在家蚕幼虫头部中表达量最高,在化蛹阶段表达量逐渐增加;NEDD8在Bm N细胞内普遍存在并且可能与参与Bm NPV复制。本研究所得结果为进一步研究NEDD8在家蚕中的生物学功能及修饰底物蛋白的作用机制奠定了基础。     

家蚕化学感受蛋白CSP16的表达及结合特性分析

【目的】化学感受蛋白(chemosensory proteins,CSPs)在昆虫化学信号的感受识别和生长发育调节等生理过程具有重要作用。本研究旨在探索CSP16在家蚕Bombyx mori中的功能。【方法】利用RT-q PCR分析csp16在家蚕不同发育时期和不同组织的表达特征,用原核表达系统对家蚕CSP16进行表达纯化,并通过荧光结合实验检测该蛋白与不同配体化合物的结合特性。【结果】RT-q PCR结果表明,csp16在家蚕1-5龄幼虫中呈规律性表达,各龄期眠蚕中表达量最高,5龄第3天幼虫中主要表达于头、表皮、精巢和卵巢等。蜕皮激素(20E)处理后csp16在不同龄期幼虫和5龄幼虫不同组织中的表达量上调。纯化后CSP16的荧光结合实验表明,CSP16与醇类、酯类、醛类、酚类和苯环类等化合物的亲和力都较弱。【结论】csp16在家蚕不同龄期幼虫眠蚕中表达量最高,蜕皮激素使csp16在家蚕取食幼虫中的表达量出现上调,提示其可能参与家蚕幼虫的蜕皮过程。     

蜕皮激素对家蚕后部丝腺谷氨酸-丙酮酸转氨酶活力的影响

本文报道了β-蜕皮激素(简称MH)对家蚕后丝腺谷氨酸-丙酮酸转氨酶(简称GPT)活力以及产丝量的影响。对五龄不同时期一次添食MH和每日连续添食MH以及MH剂量变化的研究结果表明:无论何种处理,MH都能促进GPT的活力;但不同的处理,其效果不一样。其中以五龄前期添食MH和五龄每日低剂量(夏蚕每头0.5微克和春蚕每头2微克)连续添食的处理,效果最佳;不但能促进GPT的活力,而且能提高丝蛋白合成能力。此外,还发现添食MH的浓度与GPT活力并不相关;MH对GPT活力的影响,因蚕品种而有差异,春蚕多丝量品种较夏蚕少丝量品种效果显著;MH低剂量多次添食比高剂量一次添食可避免产生不良后果。     

一种新的家蚕信息素相关蛋白基因BmP218的生物信息学分析及功能预测

在进行抑制性减法杂交实验中,我们获得一条差异基因片段,EST拼接终获得了这一个654bp ORF阅读框,NCBI数据库检索未发现同源基因.但在家蚕数据库检索有同源基因存在为一种信息素相关的结合蛋白,PCR实验结果表明该基因确实在家蚕多种组织中存在转录,证明是一种新的基因,暂命名为BmP218.进一步生物信息学分析表明该定位在家蚕的第23号染色体上,有7个外显子.其同源物物有8个,虽然基因结构不同,但结构域非常相似.蛋白质分析中发现蛋白结构中包含有6个α螺旋,12个不规则卷曲,在氨基酸序列中存在有一段与昆虫细小病毒表壳蛋白类似的区域(100-183).     

镉胁迫对家蚕脂肪体脂质过氧化物含量及抗氧化酶活性和mRNA表达的影响

【目的】探讨鳞翅目模式昆虫家蚕Bombyx mori作为重金属污染的监测指示生物在镉胁迫下的酶反应及相关的基因表达。【方法】给家蚕幼虫期全龄添食镉(Cd²⁺), 调查不同性别家蚕5龄幼虫脂肪体中脂质过氧化物丙二醛（MDA）的含量, 超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）、 过氧化氢酶（CAT）和谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶（GSH-Px）的活性及其基因表达水平的变化。【结果】Cd²⁺胁迫对雌雄家蚕MDA 含量均具有浓度效应关系, MDA含量随Cd²⁺胁迫浓度的升高而增加。Cd²⁺胁迫下, SOD和CAT活性表现为先升后降的变化趋势, Pearson相关性分析显示SOD和CAT活性变化有显著相关性(雄: R=0.770, P=0.001; 雌: R=0.854, P=0.000）。雌性家蚕脂肪体中CAT活性变化和Cat mRNA水平的表达具有正相关性（R=0.712, P=0.003）。雄性家蚕脂肪体中GSH-Px活性随Cd²⁺胁迫浓度的升高而增加, 显示浓度 效应关系, 12.5~50 mg/kg Cd²⁺胁迫组GSH-Px活性与对照相比有显著差异（P<0.05）, 其活性和GSH-Px mRNA水平的表达具有正相关性（R=0.834, P=0.000）; 雌性家蚕脂肪体中GSH-Px活性表现为先升后降的变化趋势, 12.5 mg/kg Cd²⁺胁迫组GSH-Px活性与对照相比有显著增加（P<0.01）。【结论】结果表明, 急性镉胁迫对家蚕脂肪体有明显的毒性作用, 其作用机制与脂质过氧化加剧和抗氧化酶活性变化有关。家蚕对重金属镉的解毒机制有性别相关性。     

家蚕BmChd64基因的克隆与表达定位分析

Chd64是含有钙结合蛋白同源（Calponin homology,CH）结构域的蛋白,在果蝇蜕皮激素与保幼激素信号通路中发挥重要作用。本研究以家蚕Bombyx mori为研究对象,利用PCR克隆了与果蝇Drosophila melanogaster DmChd64同源的BmChd64基因,与表达载体pET-28a连接后,成功获得体外原核表达的BmChd64蛋白,并对其进行了亚细胞定位分析。家蚕BmChd64基因开放阅读框（ORF）的序列为567 bp,编码188个氨基酸,预测分子量大小为20.9 kDa,理论等电点为8.41,编码的蛋白在第27~130个氨基酸处存在CH结构域。同源性比对与进化分析显示,BmChd64与赤拟谷盗Tribolium castaneum和果蝇的Chd亲缘关系较近。qRT-PCR结果显示,BmChd64在家蚕5龄游走期的不同组织中均有表达,且在翅原基中的表达趋势与家蚕体内蜕皮激素（20-hydroxyecdysone,20E）滴度变化规律一致。亚细胞定位结果显示,BmChd64在细胞核与细胞质中均有分布,细胞核内荧光信号较强,且在细胞核外围较弱,推测细胞质中BmChd64也可入核,最终定位在细胞核中。研究结果表明BmChd64可能主要通过20E信号通路调控翅原基等的变态发育,这为进一步完善20E调控昆虫变态发育的分子机制提供了实验基础。     

家蚕微孢子虫感染对家蚕BmN细胞凋亡以及凋亡蛋白抑制因子IAPs表达的影响

【目的】在无任何外界凋亡因素诱导条件下,探究家蚕微孢子虫感染对家蚕卵巢细胞-BmN凋亡的影响,以及凋亡蛋白抑制因子IAPs实相表达的变化情况。【方法】显微镜下观察家蚕微孢子虫感染BmN细胞后不同时间段宿主细胞的变化情况,以及利用荧光定量PCR方法检测家蚕促凋亡基因——细胞色素C(BmCyt c)表达水平的变化,随后检索家蚕基因组与蛋白质家族数据库搜寻家蚕凋亡蛋白抑制因子IAPs基因信息,并通过荧光定量PCR方法对这些基因的实相表达情况进行定量分析。【结果】家蚕微孢子虫感染BmN细胞的前5 d,细胞状态未见明显变化。感染后7 d,BmN细胞的生长受到了一定程度的影响。第12天时,对照组中几乎所有细胞出现空泡化或细胞死亡的现象,而感染家蚕微孢子虫的BmN细胞未见空泡的出现,并且大量细胞形态完整,细胞核清晰可见。同时,BmCyt c基因的表达几乎一直处于被抑制状态,特别是感染后的第10天与第12天,该基因的表达量显著性降低(P0.01)。通过数据库检索共得到4个家蚕凋亡蛋白抑制因子:BmIAP-1、BmIAP-2、BmSurvivin-1与BmSurvivin-2。荧光定量PCR结果表明:BmIAP-1和BmSurvivin-1基因在感染后期(10 d与12 d)表达量有上升趋势,尤其是感染后的12 d,表达量显著上升(P0.01)。然而,BmIAP-2与BmSurvivin-2基因的表达在大多数时间段均处于下调状态。【结论】当无任何外界凋亡因素诱导条件下,家蚕微孢子虫感染BmN细胞后可影响宿主细胞的生长,并可抑制细胞的正常生理凋亡。依据荧光定量PCR结果,我们推测在家蚕微孢子虫感染BmN细胞时,BmIAP-1和BmSurvivin-1蛋白可能在调节细胞凋亡的过程中起一定作用。     

BmATG5 and BmATG6 mediate apoptosis following autophagy induced by 20-hydroxyecdysone or starvation

Autophagy and apoptosis, which could be induced by common stimuli, play crucial roles in development and disease. The functional relationship between autophagy and apoptosis is complex, due to the dual effects of autophagy. In the Bombyx Bm-12 cells, 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) treatment or starvation-induced cell death, with autophagy preceding apoptosis. In response to 20E or starvation, BmATG8 was rapidly cleaved and conjugated with PE to form BmATG8–PE; subsequently, BmATG5 and BmATG6 were cleaved into BmATG5-tN and BmATG6-C, respectively. Reduction of expression of BmAtg5 or BmAtg6 by RNAi decreased the proportion of cells undergoing both autophagy and apoptosis after 20E treatment or starvation. Overexpression of BmAtg5 or BmAtg6 induced autophagy but not apoptosis in the absence of the stimuli, but promoted both autophagy and apoptosis induced by 20E or starvation. Notably, overexpression of cleavage site-deleted BmAtg5 or BmAtg6 increased autophagy but not apoptosis induced by 20E or starvation, whereas overexpression of BmAtg5-tN and BmAtg6-C was able to directly trigger apoptosis or promote the induced apoptosis. In conclusion, being cleaved into BmATG5-tN and BmATG6-C, BmATG5 and BmATG6 mediate apoptosis following autophagy induced by 20E or starvation in Bombyx Bm-12 cells, reflecting that autophagy precedes apoptosis in the midgut during Bombyx metamorphosis.     

Clathrin‐dependent endocytosis predominantly mediates protein absorption by fat body from the hemolymph in Bombyx mori

During insect larval–pupal metamorphosis, proteins in the hemolymph are absorbed by the fat body for the maintenance of intracellular homeostasis; however, the type of proteins and how these proteins are internalized into the fat body are unclear. In Bombyx mori, the developmental profiles of total proteins in the hemolymph and fat body showed that hemolymph‐decreased protein bands (55–100 kDa) were in accordance with those protein bands that increased in the fat body. Inhibition of clathrin‐dependent endocytosis predominantly blocked the transportation of 55–100 kDa proteins from the hemolymph into the fat body, which was further verified by RNA interference treatment of Bmclathrin. Six hexamerins were shown to comprise ～90% of the total identified proteins in both the hemolymph and fat body by mass spectrum (MS) analysis. In addition, hemolymph‐specific proteins were mainly involved in material transportation, while fat body‐specific proteins particularly participated in metabolism. In this paper, four hexamerins were found for the first time, and potential proteins absorbed by the fat body from the hemolymph through clathrin‐dependent endocytosis were identified. This study sheds light on the protein absorption mechanism during insect metamorphosis.     

Antiapoptotic activity of 30 kDa lipoproteins family from fat body tissue of silkworm,Bombyx mori

The family of 30 kDa lipoproteins (LP1–5) is abundant in silkworm pupa fat body (FB) and hemolymph. One of its members, the 29 kDa protein decreased in concentration from peripheral (PP) FB tissue but was sustained in perivisceral (PV) FB tissue at the time of apoptosis. This study investigated the correlation of the 30 kDa proteins with FB apoptosis. Two protein fractions were purified, a 29 and a 30/31 kDa protein fraction, and they were used to test for activity against actinomycin D‐induced apoptosis in the FB tissues. Concentrations as little as 50 μg/mL of the 29 kDa protein fraction efficiently inhibited apoptosis. Less antiapoptotic activity was detected for the higher MW fraction; DNA fragmentation was observed in FB tissue treated with 50 μg/mL of the 30/31 kDa fraction. The viability of the cells in the 29 kDa protein‐supplemented culture was 40% higher than in the 31 kDa protein‐supplemented culture. However, the 30 kDa lipoproteins were not able to prevent scheduled FB degeneration during silkworm metamorphosis. Thus, it is hypothesized that the antiapoptotic 29 kDa protein needs to be proteolytically degraded by a regulatory mechanism to allow programmed cell death of FB tissue.     

Differences in nutrient uptake between the fat body and embryonic primary cultures of silkworm （Bombyx mori）

Nutrition utilization and by-product formation in cultured insect cells has been investigated in several insect cells and has been of great interest to cell culturists and physiologists. In this research the biochemical changes in embryonic and fat body primary cultures of silkworm, Bombyx mori, have been compared. TC-100 medium supplemented with 10% and 20% FBS was used in embryonic and fat body primary cultures, respectively. Medium was renewed every week and the amount of glucose, uric acid, urea, total protein and alkaline phosphatase were measured in the samples from medium of primary cultures using spectrophotometeric methods. All biochemical macromolecules except uric acid showed significant changes. Glucose decreased in embryonic tissues, while in fat body culture its amount increased. Urea accumulation in embryonic culture was higher than in the fat body cultures. Since urea is a by-product, this accumulation could be due to higher utilization of amino acids. Total protein showed considerable changes and was consumed by embryonic culture more than the fat body＇ s. Alkaline phosphatase showed stronger activity in embryonic cells.