Arrest of oogenesis in the bug Rhodnius prolixus challenged with the fungus Aspergillus niger is mediated by immune response-derived PGE2

In this work we characterized the immune response of the insect Rhodnius prolixus to a direct injection into the hemocoel of the non-entomopathogenic fungus Aspergillus niger, and evaluated its consequences on host oogenesis. These animals were able to respond by mounting effective cellular and humoral responses to this fungus; these responses were shown, however, to have reproductive fitness costs, as the number of eggs laid per female was significantly reduced. The disturbance of egg formation during infectious process correlated with an elevation in the titer of hemolymph prostaglandin E₂ 48 h post-challenge. Administration of Zymosan A as an immunogenic non-infectious challenge produced similar effects on phenoloxidase and prophenoloxidase activities, oocyte development and prostaglandin E₂ titer, precluding the hypothesis of an effect mediated by fungal metabolites in animals challenged with fungus. Ovaries at 48 h post-challenge showed absence of vitellogenic ovarian follicles, and the in vivo administration of prostaglandin E₂ or its receptor agonist misoprostol, partially reproduced this phenotype. Together these data led us to hypothesize that immune-derived prostaglandin E₂ raised from the insect response to the fungal challenge is involved in disturbing follicle development, contributing to a reduction in host reproductive output and acting as a host-derived adaptive effector to infection.     

Analysis of Whitefly Transcriptional Responses to Beauveria bassiana Infection Reveals New Insights into Insect-Fungus Interactions

Background

The fungal pathogen, Beauveria bassiana, is an efficient biocontrol agent against a variety of agricultural pests. A thorough understanding of the basic principles of insect-fungus interactions may enable the genetic modification of Beauveria bassiana to enhance its virulence. However, the molecular mechanism of insect response to Beauveria bassiana infection is poorly understood, let alone the identification of fungal virulent factors involved in pathogenesis.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Here, next generation sequencing technology was applied to examine the expression of whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) genes in response to the infection of Beauveria bassiana. Results showed that, compared to control, 654 and 1,681genes were differentially expressed at 48 hours and 72 hours post-infected whiteflies, respectively. Functional and enrichment analyses indicated that the DNA damage stimulus response and drug metabolism were important anti-fungi strategies of the whitefly. Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway was also likely involved in the whitefly defense responses. Furthermore, the notable suppression of general metabolism and ion transport genes observed in 72 hours post-infected B. tabaci might be manipulated by fungal secreted effectors. By mapping the sequencing tags to B. bassiana genome, we also identified a number of differentially expressed fungal genes between the early and late infection stages. These genes are generally associated with fungal cell wall synthesis and energy metabolism. The expression of fungal cell wall protein genes might play an important role in fungal pathogenesis and the dramatically up-regulated enzymes of carbon metabolism indicate the increasing usage of energy during the fungal infection.

Conclusions/Significance

To our knowledge, this is the first report on the molecular mechanism of fungus-whitefly interactions. Our results provide a road map for future investigations on insect-pathogen interactions and genetically modifying the fungus to enhance its efficiency in whitefly control.     

昆虫内共生菌及其功能研究进展

昆虫内共生菌与宿主之间的互作关系已逐渐成为昆虫学的研究热点之一。昆虫内共生菌具有协助宿主营养代谢、 逃避天敌攻击和增强抗药性等功能： 通过协助宿主营养代谢, 提供食物中缺乏的营养物质来弥补食物中营养物质的不足; 分泌抗菌肽、 毒素等物质以增强对外源寄生物等的防御能力, 抑制对宿主的不利影响; 同时, 也可以增强宿主抗逆性, 调控植物生理反应, 抑制植物对宿主的不利影响; 利用对抗逆性基因精确的表达调控来增强宿主抗药性等。因此, 内共生菌介导的宿主生物学性状的改变, 扩大了宿主昆虫的生态位, 成为昆虫生长发育过程中的重要调控因子。目前, 昆虫内共生菌的功能往往是通过研究宿主感染共生菌前后性状的变化而证实。近几年, 转录组学、 蛋白质组学、 基因组学等技术的进步, 促进了内共生菌与宿主昆虫共生机制研究的发展。通过研究内共生菌及其功能基因在昆虫种群动态中的作用, 特别是内共生菌感染对宿主生殖、 存活、 适应环境能力的影响, 将有利于揭示内共生菌与宿主的共生机制, 并最终为开发新的防控技术提供理论依据。本文针对昆虫内共生菌的功能进行了综述, 并对日后的研究方向进行了展望, 提供了研究昆虫内共生菌与宿主互作关系的方法及建议。     

Transcriptome analysis of sugar beet root maggot (Tetanops myopaeformis) genes modulated by the Beta vulgaris host

Sugar beet root maggot (SBRM, Tetanops myopaeformis von Röder) is a major but poorly understood insect pest of sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.). The molecular mechanisms underlying plant defense responses are well documented, however, little information is available about complementary mechanisms for insect adaptive responses to overcome host resistance. To date, no studies have been published on SBRM gene expression profiling. Suppressive subtractive hybridization (SSH) generated more than 300 SBRM ESTs differentially expressed in the interaction of the pest with a moderately resistant (F1016) and a susceptible (F1010) sugar beet line. Blast2GO v. 3.2 search indicated that over 40% of the differentially expressed genes had known functions, primarily driven by fruit fly D. melanogaster genes. Expression patterns of 18 selected EST clones were confirmed by RT‐PCR analysis. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis predicted a dominance of metabolic and catalytic genes involved in the interaction of SBRM with its host. SBRM genes functioning during development, regulation, cellular process, signaling and under stress conditions were annotated. SBRM genes that were common or unique in response to resistant or susceptible interactions with the host were identified and their possible roles in insect responses to the host are discussed.     

三株球孢白僵菌侵染烟粉虱的比较生长动力学及其毒力

同一种虫生真菌的不同菌株对于特定昆虫宿主的毒力可存在显著差异,真菌在昆虫体内的生长能力不同可能是引起这种差异的原因之一。为了探讨真菌在宿主体内的生长动力学与其毒力的关系,本研究用生测法测定了3株球孢白僵菌（GZGY-1-3、SCWJ-2、WLMQ-20）在高剂量（1×108孢子/mL）和低剂量（1×106孢子/mL）下对烟粉虱4龄若虫的毒力,用实时荧光定量PCR技术对真菌在宿主体内的拷贝数进行了定量,用荧光显微方法观察了白僵菌侵染烟粉虱的过程。生物测定实验结果显示：不论在高剂量还是低剂量下,菌株GZGY-1-3杀死烟粉虱所需的时间最短（在高剂量和低剂量下LT50分别为2.29d和6.10d）,其次是菌株SCWJ-2（LT50分别为3.03d和7.38d）,菌株WLMQ-20所需时间最长（LT50分别为4.13d和9.39d）。对于同一菌株,其高剂量下的毒力显著高于低剂量下的毒力。实时荧光定量PCR实验显示,接触高剂量孢子后烟粉虱获得的孢子数远远高于接触低剂量时的孢子数。接种后,每一菌株和每一剂量下的真菌生长都表现出一个相似的模式。在接种24h后,真菌细胞数量显著下降,在接种后24–48h之间是一个简短的恢复阶段,接种48–72h后是真菌的细胞数略有净增长的稳定时期,在宿主死亡前后的阶段,真菌数量急剧增加,与接种后最初24h相比高了近1 000倍。然而,尽管它们的生长模式相似,但是却存在着量上的差异,由致病性强、剂量高的菌株侵染的昆虫体内的最终真菌菌体数高。荧光显微技术观察到的白僵菌对烟粉虱的侵染过程证实了定量PCR的结果。这些结果说明菌株间毒力的差异在一定程度上是由真菌生长动力学的量化差异所决定的。