Peptidergic control in a fruit crop pest: The spotted-wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii

PLoS One. 2017 Nov 10;12(11):e0188021. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0188021. eCollection 2017.

Abstract

Neuropeptides play an important role in the regulation of feeding in insects and offer potential targets for the development of new chemicals to control insect pests. A pest that has attracted much recent attention is the highly invasive Drosophila suzukii, a polyphagous pest that can cause serious economic damage to soft fruits. Previously we showed by mass spectrometry the presence of the neuropeptide myosuppressin (TDVDHVFLRFamide) in the nerve bundle suggesting that this peptide is involved in regulating the function of the crop, which in adult dipteran insects has important roles in the processing of food, the storage of carbohydrates and the movement of food into the midgut for digestion. In the present study antibodies that recognise the C-terminal RFamide epitope of myosuppressin stain axons in the crop nerve bundle and reveal peptidergic fibres covering the surface of the crop. We also show using an in vitro bioassay that the neuropeptide is a potent inhibitor (EC50 of 2.3 nM) of crop contractions and that this inhibition is mimicked by the non-peptide myosuppressin agonist, benzethonium chloride (Bztc). Myosuppressin also inhibited the peristaltic contractions of the adult midgut, but was a much weaker agonist (EC50 = 5.7 μM). The oral administration of Bztc (5 mM) in a sucrose diet to adult female D. suzukii over 4 hours resulted in less feeding and longer exposure to dietary Bztc led to early mortality. We therefore suggest that myosuppressin and its cognate receptors are potential targets for disrupting feeding behaviour of adult D. suzukii.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Crops, Agricultural*
  • Drosophila / physiology*
  • Pest Control, Biological*

Grants and funding

This study was supported by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 (CSG, REI) and 7th Framework research and innovation programmes (REI, NA) under grant agreement 634361 and 613678, respectively. FERA Science provided support in the form of a salary for NA, but did not have any additional role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The specific roles of these authors are articulated in the ‘author contributions’ section.