Hydrophobic interaction of P25, containing Asn-linked oligosaccharide chains, with the H-L complex of silk fibroin produced by Bombyx mori.

Fibroin light (L-) chain and P25 are low molecular weight protein components of silk fibroin which are secreted from the posterior silk gland cells of the silkworm, Bombyx mori. The primary structure of L-chain was determined previously by cDNA cloning and peptide analysis, but that of P25 has only been deduced from its genomic sequence. Our previous studies with specific antibodies against L-chain and P25 have shown that L-chain and H-chain are linked by disulfide bond(s) but P25 is not covalently linked to H-chain. Here, we present evidence that P25 associates with the H-L complex primarily by hydrophobic interactions and that P25 is a glycoprotein containing Asn-linked oligosaccharide chains. From the analysis of three fibroin-secretion-deficient 'naked pupa' mutant breeds [Nd(2), Nd-s and Nd-sD], it is suggested that P25 interacts with H-chain in the absence of H-L linkage but its content of oligosaccharide is reduced when the H-L linkage is not formed. From these results, models are presented implying that the H-L complex and P25 are associated to form a higher-order complex of specific conformation during the processes of intracellular transport and secretion, and that the Asn-linked glycosylation of P25 is partially altered under such conditions.     

Tissue-specific and periodic changes in the nuclease sensitivity of the fibroin gene chromatin in the silkworm Bombyx mori

Nuclei of substantial purity were isolated from the middle or posterior silk glands of the silkworm Bombyx mori larvae. Both the fibroin H- and L-chain gene sequences in the isolated nuclei from the posterior silk glands of the fifth instar larvae, where the genes are transcribed actively, are extremely sensitive to the digestion with DNaseI; on the other hand, these sequences in the middle silk gland nuclei from the same larvae, where the genes are not expressed, are markedly resistant to the digestion. The H-chain gene sequences in the posterior silk gland nuclei from the fifth instar larvae are also highly susceptible to the digestion with micrococcal nuclease, HinfI, and HhaI. The digestion products with micrococcal nuclease show a continuous size distribution. The H-chain gene sequences in the middle silk gland nuclei or the posterior silk gland nuclei from the fourth molting stage are cleaved partially into nucleosome dimer to oligomer sizes upon digestion with higher concentrations of micrococcal nuclease, suggesting that the inactive forms of the H-chain gene chromatin are constructed by folding of the chromatin fiber containing a regular array of nucleosomes. Hypersensitive sites to micrococcal nuclease are present near both ends of the second exon, a major body of the fibroin H-chain gene, in both the active and inactive forms of the chromatin. The DNaseI or micrococcal nuclease sensitivity of the H-chain gene chromatin in the posterior silk gland nuclei shows periodical changes corresponding to the intermolt-molt-intermolt cycle.     

野桑蚕、蓖麻蚕及家蚕基因组的RFLP分析

以家蚕Bombyx mori丝素重链基因、丝胶基因1和胰凝乳蛋白酶抑制因子13基因为探针,对野桑蚕B.mandarina、蓖麻蚕Philosamia cynthia ricini和家蚕B.mori基因组DNA进行限制性片段长度多态性分析。结果发现,在野桑蚕、蓖麻蚕基因组中存在着家蚕丝素重链基因、丝胶基因1的同源序列,而在中日野桑蚕以及蓖麻蚕品种间存在着限制性酶切位点差异;丝胶基因1在中国野桑蚕基因组的EcoRⅠ酶切图谱较日本野桑蚕与家蚕更为一致,表明家蚕与中国野桑蚕亲缘关系更近。此外,在野桑蚕基因组中发现了家蚕胰凝乳蛋白酶抑制因子13基因的同源序列,并且在家蚕品种间以及中日野桑蚕之间也存在着多态性。这些结果表明不同绢丝昆虫在适应生存环境的进化过程中,基因组发生了结构改变。     

YAC介导的天蚕丝素基因向家蚕的转移──天蚕丝素基因-YAC克隆在家蚕的表达

本文为天蚕Antheraeyamamai丝素基因在家蚕Bombyxmori成功表达的首次报道。我们构建了天蚕丝素基因的YAC克隆,然后把含有该克隆的DNA溶液导入家蚕受精卵。分子杂交实验证明天蚕丝素基因已整合到家蚕基因组中。通过丝心蛋白氨基酸组分分析以及茧丝的溶解性比较,发现有部分转基因家委表达了天蚕丝素基因。F2代的转基因家蚕蛾的染色体DNA中同时还存在YAC序列,说明YAC对丝素基因具有介导作用。天蚕丝素基因以单拷贝形式存在于转基因家蚕中。     

Proteomic studies of isoforms of the P25 component of Bombyx mori fibroin

It is recognized that P25 is one of three polypeptide components of the fibroin synthesized in the larval silk gland (SG) of silkworm, having two glycosylated isoforms. In the present study, however, eight P25 isoforms were separated by proteomics, including two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of whole SG proteins, and were identified by the peptide mass fingerprinting method. Four of the eight isoforms were identified as Bombyx mandarina P25s, although the SG of Bombyx mori has never been considered to contain the P25 from B. mandarina. It is suggested that this diversity of P25 isoforms depends on phosphorylation modification in addition to glycosylation.     

cDNA and deduced amino acid sequences of apolipophorin-IIIs from Bombyx mori and Bombyx mandarina

The cDNA sequence for apolipophorin-III from two strains of Bombyx mori (N4 and P50) and the Japanese and Chinese strains of Bombyx mandarina were determined. Both the cDNA and deduced amino acid sequences of the four apolipophorin-IIIs were highly similar (95-98%). The four Bombyx sequences also showed significant similarity to the sequence of apolipophorin-III from another lepidopteran, Manduca sexta (83-84%), particularly in the five amphipathic alpha-helices that are proposed to play a critical role in the binding of apolipophorin-III to lipophorin. In the coding region, the nucleotide sequences for the Chinese strain of B. mandarina and the P50 strain of B. mori were identical, supporting the suggestion that P50 is the current strain most closely related to the original domesticated strain. The N4 strain of B. mori is more closely related to these two strains than is the Japanese strain of B. mandarina, suggesting that Japanese strain of B. mandarina separated from the Chinese strain of B. mandarina before domestication of B. mori. Arch.     

Predominant synthesis of fibroin heavy and light chains on the membrane-bound polysomes prepared from the posterior silk gland of the silkworm, Bombyx mori

Membrane-bound polysomes were prepared from the posterior silk gland of the silkworm, Bombyx mori, on the fourth to fifth day in the fifth larval instar. The polysomes, when supplemented with a soluble fraction from the posterior silk gland, exhibited the elongation reaction of the growing polypeptide-chains, but the initiation reaction of polypeptide synthesis was not demonstrated in this system. The predominant products synthesized on the membrane-bound polysomes were fibroin heavy chain (H-chain) and light chain (L-chain), while polypeptides of heterogeneous size classes were synthesized on the 105,000 X g-sedimentable polysomes. A substantial fraction of the fibroin L-chain synthesized was bound to the H-chain by disulfide bond. Most of the newly synthesized fibroin H- and L-chains on the membrane-bound polysomes were proved to be present within microsomal membrane vesicles because of their insensitivity to digestion with proteases in the absence of Triton X-100.     

Transposable genetic element found in the 5'-flanking region of the fibroin H-chain gene in a genomic clone from the silkworm Bombyx mori

A transposable genetic element was found in the 5'-flanking region of the fibroin H-chain gene in one of the genomic clones from the silkworm Bombyx mori. This element, named K-1.4, is about 1 X 4 X 10(3) base-pairs long, contains an open reading frame of only 225 base-pairs and has inverted repeats of 12 base-pairs at both ends. Duplication of three base-pairs seems to have occurred when this element was integrated into the silkworm genome. About 15 copies of K-1.4 are present per haploid genome of various silkworm strains. Genomic loci of some of these elements are different among different strains or even among individual offspring of the same parents. K-1.4 is present also in the genome of Bombyx mandarina. The K-1.4-related sequences are present in some species belonging to the family Saturniidae.     

Proteome analysis of silk gland proteins from the silkworm, Bombyx mori

The silk gland of Bombyx mori is an organ specialized for the synthesis and secretion of silk proteins. We report here the resolution of silk gland proteins by 2-DE and the identification of many of those proteins. This was accomplished by dissecting the glands into several sections, with each exhibiting more than 400 protein spots by 2-DE, of which 100 spots were excised and characterized by in-gel digestion followed by PMF. Ninety-three proteins were tentatively identified. These were then categorized into groups involved in silk protein secretion, transport, lipid metabolism, defense, etc. Western blotting of a 2-DE gel using an antibody of the carotenoid binding protein confirmed the presence of this protein in the silk gland. Proteins including fibroin L-chain and P25 were found as multiple isoforms, some of which contained differential amounts of phosphate residues as analyzed by on-probe dephosphorylation. The current analysis contributes to our understanding of proteins expressed by the silk gland not only of the model lepidopteran B. mori, but also to proteins from other silk-producing insects such as Philosamia cynthia ricini.     

Analysis of ESTs and gene expression patterns of the poste-rior silkgland in the fifth instar larvae of silkworm, Bom-byx mori L.

The fibroin gene expression pattern and regulation of the posterior silkgland were studied by means of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) using the first and fifth day larvae of the fifth instar of silkworm, Bombyx mori L (strain: C 108). The results showed that there were 911 repetitive ESTs and 1950 single sequences (Singlets) among total 2861 consentient sequences, which were spliced. 1335 sequences were identified and the other 1526 were unknown. 5560 sequences (55.89%) in the posterior silkgland cell of the silkworm were new ESTs without ho-mology with EST data published by Mita et al. The number of repetitive ESTs and single sequences from the first day larvae of the fifth instar was double more than that of the fifth day of the same instar in the silkworms. The unigenes which were more than 50 in repetitive EST size (contig size) came to only about 0.5% in total consentient sequences. There were significant differences between gene expression frequencies, and expressed genes were related to fibroin synthesis and its secretion and fibroin composition. Comparing the fifth day with the first day of the fifth instar, the genes-expressed quantity of fibroin heavy-chain gene was 18 fold higher, fibroin light-chain gene 9 fold and fibroin P52 gene 8 fold. 508 genes functioned for cellular component and 315 for enzyme after function tracing. These results implied that the gene expression of the first day was mainly for preparation for fibroin synthesis except for the growth of silkgland cells, and the gene expression of the fifth day of the fifth instar was mainly for synthesizing and excreting fibroin. Because the ratio of heavy chain, light chain and p25 of fibroin was not 6:6:1 as theoretically expected, or its special H-chain structure, the H-chain gene was not easy to detect through EST technique. Most of genes among total 2861 consentient sequences functioned for fibroin synthesis and secretion. This suggested the fibroin synthesis and secretion procedure of the posterior silkgland was more complex than the knowledge we have.     

Mitochondrial genome nucleotide substitution pattern between domesticated silkmoth, Bombyx mori, and its wild ancestors, Chinese Bombyx mandarina and Japanese Bombyx mandarina

Bombyx mori and Bombyx mandarina are morphologically and physiologically similar. In this study, we compared the nucleotide variations in the complete mitochondrial (mt) genomes between the domesticated silkmoth, B. mori, and its wild ancestors, Chinese B. mandarina (ChBm) and Japanese B. mandarina (JaBm). The sequence divergence and transition mutation ratio between B. mori and ChBm are significantly smaller than those observed between B. mori and JaBm. The preference of transition by DNA strands between B. mori and ChBm is consistent with that between B. mori and JaBm, however, the regional variation in nucleotide substitution rate shows a different feature. These results suggest that the ChBm mt genome is not undergoing the same evolutionary process as JaBm, providing evidence for selection on mtDNA. Moreover, investigation of the nucleotide sequence divergence in the A+T-rich region of Bombyx mt genomes also provides evidence for the assumption that the A+T-rich region might not be the fastest evolving region of the mtDNA of insects.     

Analysis of ESTs and gene expression patterns of the posterior silkgland in the fifth instar larvae of silkworm, Bombyx mori L.

The fibroin gene expression pattern and regulation of the posterior silkgland were studied by means of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) using the first and fifth day larvae of the fifth instar of silkworm, Bombyx mori L (strain: C 108). The results showed that there were 911 repetitive ESTs and 1950 single sequences (Singlets) among total 2861 consentient sequences, which were spliced. 1335 sequences were identified and the other 1526 were unknown. 5560 sequences (55.89%) in the posterior silkgland cell of the silkworm were new ESTs without homology with EST data published by Mita et al. The number of repetitive ESTs and single sequences from the first day larvae of the fifth instar was double more than that of the fifth day of the same instar in the silkworms. The unigenes which were more than 50 in repetitive EST size (contig size) came to only about 0.5% in total consentient sequences. There were significant differences between gene expression frequencies, and expressed genes were related to fibroin synthesis and its secretion and fibroin composition. Comparing the fifth day with the first day of the fifth instar, the genes-expressed quantity of fibroin heavy-chain gene was 18 fold higher, fibroin light-chain gene 9 fold and fibroin P52 gene 8 fold. 508 genes functioned for cellular component and 315 for enzyme after function tracing. These results implied that the gene expression of the first day was mainly for preparation for fibroin synthesis except for the growth of silkgland cells, and the gene expression of the fifth day of the fifth instar was mainly for synthesizing and excreting fibroin. Because the ratio of heavy chain, light chain and p25 of fibroin was not 6:6:1 as theoretically expected, or its special H-chain structure, the H-chain gene was not easy to detect through EST technique. Most of genes among total 2861 consentient sequences functioned for fibroin synthesis and secretion. This suggested the fibroin synthesis and secretion procedure of the posterior silkgland was more complex than the knowledge we have.     

Sequence polymorphisms around the 5'-end of the silkworm fibroin H-chain gene suggesting the occurrence of crossing-over between heteromorphic alleles

Nucleotide sequences around the 5'-ends of the silkworm fibroin H-chain genes of the three strains, Nd(2), J-139, and F1(Gunka X Hoshun), of Bombyx mori were determined. Comparison of the sequences among these strains and the sequences reported previously for the two other strains, F1(Gunpo X Shugyoku) and Daizo, indicates that polymorphisms are present in the 5'-flanking and intron regions and that each region has at least two sequence variants independent of each other. These results suggest that crossing over between the heteromorphic H-chain alleles has occurred during the breeding of these strains.     

Molecular phylogeny of silkmoths reveals the origin of domesticated silkmoth, Bombyx mori from Chinese Bombyx mandarina and paternal inheritance of Antheraea proylei mitochondrial DNA

Molecular phylogeny of some of the economically important silkmoths was derived using three mitochondrial genes, 12S rRNA, 16S rRNA, and COI, and the control region (CR). Maximum likelihood (ML) analyses showed two distinct clades, one consisting of moths from Bombycidae family and the other from Saturniidae family. The mitochondrial CR showed length polymorphisms with indels. The ML analyses for complete mitochondrial genome sequences of Bombyx mori (strains Aojuku, C108, Backokjam, and Xiafang), Japanese and Chinese strains of B. mandarina (Japanese mandarina and Chinese mandarina) and, Antheraea pernyi revealed two distinct clades, one comprising of B. mori strains and the other with B. mandarina, and A. pernyi forming an outgroup. Pairwise distances revealed that all of the strains of B. mori studied are closer to Chinese than to Japanese mandarina. Phylogenetic analyses based on whole mitochondrial genome sequences, the finding of a tandem triplication of a 126bp repeat element only in Japanese mandarina, and chromosome number variation in B. mandarina suggest that B. mori must have shared its recent common ancestor with Chinese mandarina. Another wild species of the Bombycidae family, Theophila religiosa, whose phylogenetic status was not clear, clustered together with the other bombycid moths in the study. Analysis of the interspecific hybrid, A. proylei gave evidence for paternal inheritance of mitochondrial DNA.     

13C CP/MAS NMR study on structural heterogeneity in Bombyx mori silk fiber and their generation by stretching

It is important to resolve the structure of Bombyx mori silk fibroin before spinning (silk I) and after spinning (silk II), and the mechanism of the structural transition during fiber formation in developing new silk-like fiber. The silk I structure has been recently resolved by (13)C solid-state NMR as a "repeated beta-turn type II structure." Here, we used (13)C solid-state NMR to clarify the heterogeneous structure of the natural fiber from Bombyx mori silk fibroin in the silk II form. Interestingly, the (13)C CP/MAS NMR revealed a broad and asymmetric peak for the Ala Cbeta carbon. The relative proportions of the various heterogeneous components were determined from their relative peak intensities after line shape deconvolution. Namely, for 56% crystalline fraction (mainly repeated Ala-Gly-Ser-Gly-Ala-Gly sequences), 18% distorted beta-turn, 13% beta-sheet (parallel Ala residues), and 25% beta-sheet (alternating Ala residues). The remaining fraction of 44% amorphous Tyr-rich region, 22% in both distorted beta-turn and distorted beta-sheet. Such a heterogeneous structure including distorted beta-turn can be observed for the peptides (AG)(n) (n > 9 ). The structural change from silk I to silk II occurs exclusively for the sequence (Ala-Gly-Ser-Gly-Ala-Gly)(n) in B. mori silk fibroin. The generation of the heterogeneous structure can be studied by change in the Ala Cbeta peak of (13)C CP/MAS NMR spectra of the silk fibroin samples with different stretching ratios.     

M chromosome of the wild silkworm, Bombyx mandarina (n = 27), corresponds to two chromosomes in the domesticated silkworm, Bombyx mori (n = 28).

Chromosomes of Bombyx mori (n = 28) and of Bombyx mandarina (n = 27) were studied cytogenetically to resolve the origin of the large M chromosome in the Japaneses type of B. mandarina. In the F1 progeny from the reciprocal cross between B. mandarina and B. mori, the mitotic chromosome number was 2n = 55, and a chromosome configuration of 26 bivalents plus 1 trivalent was observed at metaphase I of germ cells. The trivalent chromosome consisted of the M chromosome from B. mandarina and two chromosomes from B. mori. When males of B. mori were mated to the F1 females, nuclei with two types of chromosome number (2n = 55 and 2n = 56) and two sets of chromosome pairs (26 bivalents plus 1 trivalent versus 28 bivalents) were observed in the metaphase I stage. Linkage analysis showed that the 14th chromosome of B. mori was involved in these two types of chromosome segregation. This result indicates that the M chromosome in B. mandarina arose from a fusion between a chromosome corresponding to the 14th linkage group and another, yet unidentified linkage group.     

Distinctive presence of peritracheal athrocytes in Bombyx mori L. and Bombyx mandarina M. as compared to their absence in several other lepidopteran species

Pericardial cells are present in a wide variety of insects and are thought to constitute the majority of 'athrocytes (nephrocytes)'. In contrast, peritracheal athrocytes have only been observed in Bombyx mori L. Although peritracheal athrocytes have a distinct morphology, it is unknown whether these cells are common to all lepidopterans. We anatomically compared eight lepidopteran species: Bombyx mori L. and Bombyx mandarina M. (Bombycidae); Samia cynthia ricini D. (Saturniidae); Agrius convolvuli L. (Sphingidae); Spodoptera litura F. and Mythimna separata W. (Noctuidae); Pieris rapae L. (Pieridae); and Glyphodes pyloalis W. (Crambidae). Of these species, only Bombyx mori L. and Bombyx mandarina M. possess peritracheal athrocytes.