Transcriptome-Wide Characterization of piRNAs during the Developmental Process of European Honey-Bee Larval Guts

Genes (Basel). 2022 Oct 17;13(10):1879. doi: 10.3390/genes13101879.

Abstract

piRNAs play pivotal roles in maintaining genome stability, regulating gene expression, and modulating development and immunity. However, there are few piRNA-associated studies on honey-bees, and the regulatory role of piRNAs in the development of bee guts is largely unknown. Here, the differential expression pattern of piRNAs during the developmental process of the European honey-bee (Apis mellifera) larval guts was analyzed, followed by investigation of the regulatory network and the potential function of differentially expressed piRNAs (DEpiRNAs) in regulating gut development. A total of 843 piRNAs were identified in the larval guts of A. mellifera; among these, 764 piRNAs were shared by 4- (Am4 group), 5- (Am5 group), and 6-day-old (Am6 group) larval guts, while 11, 67, and one, respectively, were unique. The first base of piRNAs in each group had a cytosine (C) bias. Additionally, 61 up-regulated and 17 down-regulated piRNAs were identified in the "Am4 vs. Am5" comparison group, further targeting 9, 983 genes, which were involved in 50 GO terms and 142 pathways, while two up-regulated and five down-regulated piRNAs were detected in the "Am5 vs. Am6" comparison group, further targeting 1, 936 genes, which were engaged in 41 functional terms and 101 pathways. piR-ame-742536 and piR-ame-856650 in the "Am4 vs. Am5" comparison group as well as piR-ame-592661 and piR-ame-31653 in the "Am5 vs. Am6" comparison group were found to link to the highest number of targets. Further analysis indicated that targets of DEpiRNAs in these two comparison groups putatively regulate seven development-associated signaling pathways, seven immune-associated pathways, and three energy metabolism pathways. Moreover, the expression trends of five randomly selected DEpiRNAs were verified based on stem-loop RT-PCR and RT-qPCR. These results were suggestive of the overall alteration of piRNAs during the larval developmental process and demonstrated that DEpiRNAs potentially modulate development-, immune-, and energy metabolism-associated pathways by regulating the expression of corresponding genes via target binding, further affecting the development of A. mellifera larval guts. Our data offer a novel insight into the development of bee larval guts and lay a basis for clarifying the underlying mechanisms.

Keywords: Apis mellifera ligustica; development; gene expression; gut; honey-bee; larva; piRNA; regulatory network.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Bees / genetics
  • Cytosine / metabolism
  • Honey*
  • Larva / genetics
  • Larva / metabolism
  • RNA, Small Interfering / genetics
  • RNA, Small Interfering / metabolism
  • Transcriptome* / genetics

Substances

  • Cytosine
  • RNA, Small Interfering

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31702190) for R.G., the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32172792) for D.-F.C., the Earmarked Fund for China Agriculture Research System (CARS-44-KXJ7) for D.-F.C., the Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province (2022J01131334) for R.G., the Master Supervisor Team Fund of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (Rui Guo) for R.G., the Scientific Research Project of College of Animal Sciences (College of Bee Science) of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (Rui Guo) for R.G., and the Fund for Excellent Master Dissertation of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University for Q.L.