A bacterial binary toxin system that kills both insects and aquatic crustaceans: Photorhabdus insect-related toxins A and B

Hao-Ching Wang; Shin-Jen Lin; Han-Ching Wang; Ramya Kumar; Phuoc Thien Le; Jiann-Horng Leu

doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1011330

A bacterial binary toxin system that kills both insects and aquatic crustaceans: Photorhabdus insect-related toxins A and B

PLoS Pathog. 2023 May 4;19(5):e1011330. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1011330. eCollection 2023 May.

Authors

Hao-Ching Wang^{1

2

3}, Shin-Jen Lin³, Han-Ching Wang^{3

4}, Ramya Kumar^{3

4}, Phuoc Thien Le¹, Jiann-Horng Leu^{5

6}

Affiliations

¹ Graduate Institute of Translational Medicine, College of Medical Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
² The PhD Program for Translational Medicine, College of Medical Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University and Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
³ International Center for the Scientific Development of Shrimp Aquaculture, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan, Republic of China.
⁴ Department of Biotechnology and Bioindustry Sciences, College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan, Republic of China.
⁵ Institute of Marine Biology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung, Taiwan, Republic of China.
⁶ Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung, Taiwan, Republic of China.

Abstract

Photorhabdus insect-related toxins A and B (PirA and PirB) were first recognized as insecticidal toxins from Photorhabdus luminescens. However, subsequent studies showed that their homologs from Vibrio parahaemolyticus also play critical roles in the pathogenesis of acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND) in shrimps. Based on the structural features of the PirA/PirB toxins, it was suggested that they might function in the same way as a Bacillus thuringiensis Cry pore-forming toxin. However, unlike Cry toxins, studies on the PirA/PirB toxins are still scarce, and their cytotoxic mechanism remains to be clarified. In this review, based on our studies of V. parahaemolyticus PirAvp/PirBvp, we summarize the current understanding of the gene locations, expression control, activation, and cytotoxic mechanism of this type of toxin. Given the important role these toxins play in aquatic disease and their potential use in pest control applications, we also suggest further topics for research. We hope the information presented here will be helpful for future PirA/PirB studies.

Copyright: © 2023 Wang et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Bacterial Proteins / metabolism
Bacterial Toxins* / metabolism
Insecta / metabolism
Penaeidae* / microbiology
Photorhabdus* / metabolism
Vibrio parahaemolyticus* / metabolism

Substances

Bacterial Proteins
Bacterial Toxins

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Ministry of Science and Technology (grant number MOST 109-2313-B-038-001-MY3 to H.C.W, MOST 110-2313-B-006-001- to S.J.L); and the University System of Taipei Joint Research Program (USTP-NTOU-TMU-109-01 to H.C.W and J.H.L). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.