Developmental and sex-dependent regulation of storage protein synthesis in the silkworm,Bombyx mori

The mechanism of sex-dependent expression of a major plasma protein, referred to as storage protein 1 (SP-1) was studied during development of the silkworm, Bombyx mori. SP-1 occurred in the hemolymph of the female as well as in the male larvae until the end of the fourth larval instar. In the last instar larvae, the amount of SP-1 in the hemolymph greatly increased in females, but markedly declined in males. The level of fat body mRNA for SP-1 reflected the developmental and sex-dependent changes in the hemolymph concentration of SP-1. The developmental patterns of hemolymph proteins in the third and the fourth instar larvae of sex-mosaic individuals were quite analogous to those observed in normal larvae at the same developmental stages. The hemolymph concentration of SP-1 at the last larval instar of the sex mosaics varied among individuals irrespective of the gonad compositions. In vitro culture of the fat body cells dissected from several locations of a sex-mosaic larva provided evidence that each fat body cell in a common hemolymph milieu synthesizes a high (female type) or a low (male type) level of SP-1 depending on the sex chromosome composition. The amount of vitellogenin in the hemolymph of the sex-mosaic pupae was in proportion to that of SP-1 at the last larval instar. From these results, it is suggested that the sex-dependent expression of SP-1 and vitellogenin in B. mori is genetically determined and developmentally regulated without participation of the reproductive organs or any sex-specific humoral factors.     

Developmental pattern of thymidylate synthetase activity in the silkworm,Bombyx mori

Thymidylate synthetase activity (as expressed per mg of protein and per the whole insect) in extracts from Bombyx mori changes considerably during development. The enzyme is present in unfertilized eggs. After fertilization its activity initially increases but then decreases in parallel with the beginning of diapause. During postdiapause embryonic development the level of the enzyme quickly increases, but decreases again after hatching. In larvae the activity is low during the first instars but rises dramatically after the 4th ecdysis. The whole period of pharate pupal, pupal, and pharate adult development is characterized by a U-shaped pattern of the thymidylate synthetase activity.In order to explain some aspects of this pattern the activity of the thymidylate synthetase in extracts from some organs of the silkworm was also examined.     

Isolation of three main sericin components from the cocoon of the silkworm,Bombyx mori

To characterize the sericin components of the cocoon of silkworm Bombyx mori, fresh cocoon shells were dissolved in saturated aqueous lithium thiocyanate containing 2-mercaptoethanol, and fractionated by ethanol precipitation. Cocoon sericin was found to mainly consist of three polypeptides having molecular masses of the 400, 250, and 150 kDa estimated by SDS-PAGE, which corresponds to the sericin present in the middle, anterior, and posterior part of the middle silk gland. The amino acid compositions of the 400 and 150 kDa components were similar to each other, but that of the 250 kDa component was different. This suggests differences in the coding gene and properties of the 250 kDa sericin from the other two.     

Genetic variants of the Bombyx mori silkworm encoding sericin proteins of different lengths

A variant sericin polypeptide originally found by acid gel electrophoresis in the Nd-s mutant strain of the silkworm, Bombyx mori, has been analyzed genetically. The vriant polypeptide (called S-2^v) is encoded by a gene which behaves as a codominant allele of the gene encoding the standard S-2 sericin polypeptide. Linkage analysis locates these alleles at 0.0 map unit on chromosome 11. SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis shows that the molecular weight of the S-2^v variant polypeptide is lower by approximately 62,500 than that of the S-2 polypeptide. Amino acid analysis indicates that the two sericin polypeptides have similar compositions. These results are consistent with the idea that the variant allele arose by deletion within the S-2 coding sequence in the Src-2 gene locus as the result of unequal recombination.     

Developmental stages of ovarian follicles of the silkworm,Bombyx mori L

Oogenesis in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, was studied by light and electron microscopy of sections of resin-embedded follicles. The development of the follicles was divided into a series of 12 distinctive stages based on various morphological criteria. Structural changes in the oocyte, nurse cells, and follicle cells are described and illustrated.     

Nutritional and hormonal effects on storage proteins in the silkworm,Bombyx mori L.

Starvation of 48 h old fifth instar larvae depressed storage protein titres initially for 48 h but retained the levels comparable to control thereafter, possibly due to nutrients obtained during the 48 h feeding after fourth ecdysis. After an initial decline ligated larvae accumulated maximum storage proteins in haemolymph. This is because of inhibitory juvenile hormone titre at the basal level besides the appropriate release of 20-hydroxyecdysone from the ectopic source(s). Injection of methoprene (10 Μg/larva) repressed accumulation of storage proteins while 20-hydroxyecdysone (10 Μg/larva) increased the same. P-soyatose injection to starved and ligated larvae accelerated storage protein accumulation in haemolymph, signalling nutrient indispensability for initiation of storage protein synthesis at the appropriate time of last instar development inBombyx mori.     

Developmental switches of sericin mRNA splicing in individual cells of Bombyx mori silkgland

Four mRNA of 10.5, 9.0, 4.0, and 2.8 kb are made from the sericin Ser1 gene by alternative maturation of a unique mRNA precursor. By means of RNA blots and in situ hybridization, we investigated variations in the distribution of these mRNA during the last larval instar in different territories of the middle silkgland. Taken together, the results from these two techniques show that 150 out of the 266 cells of this region of the organ express the Ser1 gene, but accumulate distinct mature mRNA species. Of these 150 cells 42 are specialized in a processing pathway resulting in the production of the 2.8-kb Ser1 mRNA throughout the larval instar. The 108 others perform successively three distinct splicing pathways leading to a development-dependent accumulation of, respectively, the 4.0-, the 10.5-, and the 9.0-kb mRNA. This suggests the occurrence of two switches in the splicing capacities of these cells during the fifth instar. The middle silkgland cells also express another sericin gene (Ser2) which encodes two mRNA of 5.4 and 3.1 kb, also arising by differential splicing. At the beginning of development, all the middle silkgland cells express this gene but, as development proceeds, expression becomes restricted to only the anterior cells. The biological consequence of this topological and temporal regulation of the mode of expression of these two genes is the sequential secretion and layering of the different sericins around the silk thread.     

Developmental changes in midgut trehalase activity and its localization in the silkworm, Bombyx mori

The changes in trehalase activity and its localization in the midgut of the silkworm, Bombyx mori, were studied during larval-pupal-adult development. Trehalase activity in larval midgut epithelium increased with the larval growth, reached a maximum level at the middle of the fifth instar, and then decreased gradually. Trehalase activity in larval midgut was found in the epithelial tissue but not in the digestive juice or the midgut contents.The trehalase activity in the whole midgut started to rise at the onset of spinning and increased abruptly at larval-pupal ecdysis to reach an extremely high level 3 days later. This high activity was maintained throughout the subsequent pharate adult development and dropped suddenly at emergence. The midgut trehalase activity during pupal-adult development was mainly found in the midgut contents but scarcely any in the epithelium.Subcellular distribution of midgut trehalase depended upon larval-pupal-adult development. The activity was concentrated in a precipitate fraction of the epithelium until the middle of the fifth instar. During larval-pupal development, however, the activity increased in the soluble fraction with a concomitant decrease in the precipitate fraction. Almost all the trehalase activity in pupal and pharate adult midgut was recovered in the soluble fraction of the midgut contents. The data are discussed from a viewpoint of the histolysis.     

Storage proteins in the silkworm,Bombyx mori

In the silkworm, Bombyx mori, two storage proteins named SP-1 and SP-2 were shown to decline in concentration in the haemolymph and increase in the fat body during the larval-pupal transformation, when protein granules are formed in the fat body at the same time as the degeneration of mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum. At the larval-pupal ecdysis, in females the two proteins account for 60% of total fat body protein (80% of the soluble protein), while males have very little SP-1 and SP-2 comprises only 20% of the total fat body protein. The concentration of protein granules in the fat body cytoplasm is much greater in females than in males, and the granules in females have partially crystalline inner zones. This is different from males where granules with non-crystalline structure are most numerous.The properties of these proteins purified from pupal fat body are similar to those of Cecropia storage proteins and calliphorin, all of which have molecular weights of around 500,000 and are composed of subunits of mol. wt about 85,000. SP-1 differs from SP-2 by having an exceptionally high content of methionine, but much less glutamate, phenylalanine and tyrosine. SP-1 resembles another female-specific protein, vitellogenin and SP-2 resembles calliphorin in amino acid composition.From these results, it is concluded that SP-1 and SP-2 have storage roles and are deposited in protein granules.     

Steroidal regulation of hydrolyzing activity of the dietary carbohydrates in the silkworm, Bombyx mori

Blood sugar is an essential energy source for growth and development and is maintained at a constant level through precise regulation of formation and utilization. Sugars are produced from dietary carbohydrates by enzymatic hydrolysis in the digestive tract, which are under the homeostatic control of paracrine and prandial mechanisms in mammals. Here, we show that dietary carbohydrates hydrolyzing activity of the digestive tract is developmentally regulated by the steroid hormone ecdysone in the silkworm, Bombyx mori. The dietary carbohydrates hydrolyzing activity remained high throughout the last larval period and then decreased to negligible levels until the pupal period. However, dietary carbohydrates digestive activities were constitutively high when the steroidogenic organ, prothoracic glands were ablated. The prothoracic glands produced and released a large amount of ecdysone at the end of the larval period, suggesting that ecdysone is responsible for the decrease in dietary carbohydrates hydrolyzing activity. In fact, ecdysone decreased the activity to negligible levels in silkworms lacking the prothoracic glands. The present results indicate that the dietary carbohydrates hydrolyzing activity is regulated by ecdysone and that an increase in ecdysone titer decreases that activity at the end of the larval period, suggesting that ecdysone is essential for metabolic coordination during development.     

家蚕拟浆细胞具有吞噬功能

目的：通过观察家蚕Bombyx mori吞噬细胞的微细结构,来确定拟绛色细胞是否也具有吞噬功能。方法：用荧光小球微量注射家蚕pnd pS品系的幼虫,经荧光染色剂丫啶橙和碘化丙啶染色循环血细胞后,在荧光显微镜下观察并扫描拍摄。结果：观察发现除颗粒细胞和浆血细胞外,一些原血球细胞（血干细胞）和拟绛色细胞（多酚氧化酶）也能吞噬荧光小球。在拟绛色细胞里还发现许多和颗粒细胞一样的能被丫啶橙染色的颗粒。尽管在小球细胞中没有发现被吞噬的荧光小球,但该类血球有比较多的能被丫啶橙染色的大颗粒,这表明它们可能是已经被吞噬的凋亡小体。结论：除颗粒细胞和浆血细胞外,一些原血球细胞和拟绛色细胞也能吞噬荧光小球。说明拟绛色细胞也具有吞噬功能。     

Dietary sterol preference in the silkworm, Bombyx mori

Since insects are unable to biosynthesize sterols de novo, sterols must be obtained from dietary sources. Although it has been reported that beta-sitosterol is crucial for larval growth in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, little has been investigated concerning the dietary selection of sterols by Bombyx larvae. Here, we demonstrate that Bombyx larvae have the following sterol preference: beta-sitosterol > ergosterol > cholesterol = stigmasterol. Interestingly, Bombyx larvae preferred ergosterol, an inhibitory sterol on larval growth, indicating that sterol selection following first contact of the diet with the mouth part might be different from the sterol recognition mechanism present in sterol metabolism.     

Sterol composition in larvae of the silkworm, Bombyx mori

Sterols in silkworm larvae were analyzed. Cholesterol was predominantly detected in all tissues examined. Dietary phytosterols and desmosterol, a putative biosynthetic intermediate from phytosterols to cholesterol, were also detected, indicating that imperfect intestinal conversion from phytosterols to cholesterol influences the sterol composition in larval tissues.     

Characterization of Tudor-sn-containing granules in the silkworm,Bombyx mori

The Tudor-sn protein, which contains four staphylococcal nuclease domains and a Tudor domain, is a ubiquitous protein found in almost all organisms. It has been reported that Tudor-sn in mammals participates in various cellular pathways involved in gene regulation, cell growth, and development. In insects, we have previously identified a Tudor-sn ortholog in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, and detected its interactions between with Argonaute proteins. The role of Tudor-sn in silkworm, however, still remains largely unknown. In this study, we demonstrated that silkworm Tudor-sn is a stress granule (SG) protein, and determined its interactions with other SG proteins using Bimolecular Fluorescence Complementation assay and Insect Two-Hybrid method. Depletions of Argonaute proteins and SG-marker protein Tia1 by RNAi impaired the involvement of Tudor-sn in the SG formation. Protein domain deletion analysis of Tudor-sn demonstrated that SN2 is the key domain required for the aggregation of Tudor-sn in SGs.     

Characterization of sericin powder prepared from citric acid-degraded sericin polypeptides of the silkworm, Bombyx Mori

Acid-degraded sericin powder (AC-SP) was prepared from aqueous solution containing citric acid-degraded sericin polypeptides of Bombyx mori. The morphological and biochemical properties of AC-SP were compared with those of alkali-degraded sericin powder (AL-SP) and hot-water degraded sericin powder (HW-SP). Based on an SEM analysis, AC-SP showed a thin film structure of 10-100 microm with good dispersity while AL-SP and HW-SP had a much larger thin film structure (<500 microm). The extract of AC-SP showed stronger trypsin inhibitor activity due to cocoon shell trypsin inhibitor (CSTI-IV) than that of HW-SP. The extract of AL-SP showed no CSTI-IV activity. It was found that AC-SP was a trypsin inhibitor complex powder and that the release of CSTI-IV from AC-SP depended on pH and ion strength. Similar powder materials were obtained when such organic acids as tartaric acid and succinic acid were used. These results suggest that the acid-degraded sericin polypeptides work as a protein matrix to which CSTI-IV may bind ionically.