Molecular evidence of RNA editing in Bombyx chemosensory protein family

PLoS One. 2014 Feb 13;9(2):e86932. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0086932. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

Chemosensory proteins (CSPs) are small scavenger proteins that are mainly known as transporters of pheromone/odor molecules at the periphery of sensory neurons in the insect antennae and in the producing cells from the moth female pheromone gland. Sequencing cDNAs of RNA encoding CSPs in the antennae, legs, head, pheromone gland and wings from five single individual adult females of the silkworm moth Bombyx mori showed that they differed from genomic sequences by subtle nucleotide replacement (RDD). Both intronless and intronic CSP genes expressed RDDs, although in different rates. Most interestingly, in our study the degree of RDDs in CSP genes were found to be tissue-specific. The proportion of CSP-RDDs was found to be significantly much higher in the pheromone gland. In addition, Western blot analysis of proteins in different tissues showed existence of multiple CSP protein variant chains particularly found in the pheromone gland. Peptide sequencing demonstrated the occurrence of a pleiad of protein variants for most of all BmorCSPs from the pheromone gland. Our findings show that RNA editing is an important feature in the expression of CSPs and that a high variety of RDDs is found to expand drastically thus altering the repertoire of CSP proteins in a tissue-specific manner.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Arthropod Antennae / metabolism
  • Base Sequence
  • Bombyx / genetics*
  • Bombyx / metabolism
  • DNA, Complementary
  • Female
  • Genome, Insect*
  • Insect Proteins / genetics*
  • Insect Proteins / metabolism
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Organ Specificity
  • Pheromones / genetics*
  • Pheromones / metabolism
  • Polymorphism, Genetic
  • RNA Editing*
  • Receptors, Odorant / genetics
  • Receptors, Odorant / metabolism
  • Scent Glands / metabolism
  • Sequence Alignment
  • Wings, Animal / metabolism

Substances

  • DNA, Complementary
  • Insect Proteins
  • Pheromones
  • Receptors, Odorant

Grants and funding

This work was funded by Natural Sciences Foundation of Shandong Province, Overseas Talent and Taishan Scholar, Estonian Center of Excellence in Computer Science, Estonian Research Mobility Scheme and European Regional Development Fund through Center of Excellence in Chemical Biology. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.