Molecular composition of male nuptial gifts in fireflies: shedding light on postcopulatory sexual selection
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
INSTRUMENT(S): LTQ Orbitrap Elite
ORGANISM(S): Photinus Pyralis (common Eastern Firefly) (lampyris Pyralis)
TISSUE(S): Sperm
DISEASE(S): Disease Free
SUBMITTER: 
Tim Fallon
LAB HEAD: Jing-Ke Weng
PROVIDER: PXD004005 | Pride | 2016-12-06
REPOSITORIES: Pride
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Project description:Postcopulatory sexual selection is recognized as a key driver of reproductive trait evolution, including the machinery required to produce endogenous nuptial gifts. Despite the importance of such gifts, the molecular composition of the non-gametic components of male ejaculates and their interactions with female reproductive tracts remain poorly understood. During mating, male Photinus fireflies transfer to females a spermatophore gift manufactured by multiple reproductive glands. Here we combined transcriptomics of both male and female reproductive glands with proteomics and metabolomics to better understand the synthesis, composition and fate of the spermatophore in the common Eastern firefly, Photinus pyralis. Our transcriptome of male glands revealed up-regulation of proteases that may enhance male fertilization success and activate female immune response. Using bottom-up proteomics we identified 208 functionally annotated proteins that males transfer to the female in their spermatophore. Targeted metabolomic analysis also provided the first evidence that Photinus nuptial gifts contain lucibufagin, a firefly defensive toxin. The reproductive tracts of female fireflies showed increased gene expression for several proteases that may be involved in egg production. This study offers new insights into the molecular composition of male spermatophores, and extends our understanding of how nuptial gifts may mediate postcopulatory interactions between the sexes.
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Project description:Although the presence of RNA in seminal fluid appears to be a conserved feature of male ejaculates, it is unknown whether this RNA is functional within females. Here, we develop an experimental proteomic method called VASPA (Variant Assisted SILAC Proteomic Analysis) to test the hypothesis that Drosophila male seminal fluid RNA is translated by females. We find evidence for 166 male-derived, female-translated proteins (mdFTPs) in female lower reproductive tracts at six hours postmating, many with predicted functions relevant to reproduction.
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Project description:In insects, male accessory gland proteins (ACPs) are important reproductive proteins secreted by male accessory glands (MAGs) of the internal male reproductive system. During mating, ACPs were transferred along with sperms inside female bodies and have a significant impact on the physiology of female reproduction. Under sexual selection pressures, the ACPs exhibit remarkably rapid and divergent evolution and varies from species to species. The diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), is a major insect pest of cruciferous vegetables worldwide. The reproductive physiology on post-mating state of this species is still largely unknown, which is important for management of this pest. In this study, the ACPs transferred into females during mating were identified by using a tandem mass tags quantitative proteomic analysis. The MAGs were compared before and after mating immediately. In total, we identified 123 putative secreted ACPs, including most important physiological: regulators of proteolysis, transporters and protein export machinery, signal transduction and immunity. Comparing P. xylostella with other four insect ACPs, trypsins were the only ACPs detected in all insect species. This was the first time to identify and analyze ACPs in P. xylostella. Our results have provided an important list of putative secreted ACPs, and have set the stage for further explore functions of these putative proteins in P. xylostella reproduction.
2023-03-11 | PXD038931 | Pride
Project description:Fertility depends on the coordination of complex interactions between male and female reproductive proteins inside the female reproductive tract (FRT). These interactions mediate a suite of changes in female behavior, morphology, and physiology after mating, yet little is known about how the molecular environment of the FRT may differ among species and coordinate species-specific female post-mating responses. We used semi-quantitative proteomics to compare the FRT protein composition between virgin and mated females in Drosophila melanogaster. These results are compared to those from quantitative TMT proteomic analyses of the mating-induced changes in D. simulans and D. mauritiana, and after conspecific and heterospecific inseminations. Our study highlights the value of using quantitative proteomics approaches to study the molecular composition of the FRT environment, and how its divergence may inform mechanistic studies of post-mating pre-zygotic reproductive isolation between species.
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Project description:In insects, male accessory gland proteins (ACPs) are important reproductive proteins secreted by male accessory glands (MAGs) of the internal male reproductive system. During mating, ACPs were transferred along with sperms inside female bodies and have a significant impact on the physiology of female reproduction. Under sexual selection pressures, the ACPs exhibit remarkably rapid and divergent evolution and varies from species to species. The diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), is a major insect pest of cruciferous vegetables worldwide. The reproductive physiology on post-mating state of this species is still largely unknown, which is important for management of this pest. In this study, the ACPs transferred into females during mating were identified by using a tandem mass tags quantitative proteomic analysis. The MAGs were compared before and after mating immediately. The proteomes of copulatory bursas (CB) in mated females shortly after mating were also analyzed by shotgun LC-MS/MS technique. In total, we identified 123 putative secreted ACPs, including most important physiological: regulators of proteolysis, transporters and protein export machinery, signal transduction and immunity. Comparing P. xylostella with other four insect ACPs, trypsins were the only ACPs detected in all insect species. We also identified some new insect ACPs, including protein with chitin binding Peritrophin-A domain, PMP-22/EMP/MP20/Claudin tight junction domain-containing protein, netrin-1, type II inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate 5-phosphatase, two spaetzles, allatostatin-CC and cuticular protein. This was the first time to identify and analyze ACPs in P. xylostella. Our results have provided an important list of putative secreted ACPs, and have set the stage for further explore functions of these putative proteins in P. xylostella reproduction.
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Project description:We present data using a novel method to simultaneously identify and quantify transferred male seminal proteins and the female reproductive proteome using multiplexed Tandem-Mass-Tag (TMT) isobaric labelling of the lower female reproductive tracts dissected from virgin- or recently mated- females of three species of the virilis group. We identified over 200 putative male ejaculate proteins many of which show differential abundance between species. We also identified over 2000 proteins providing the first description of the Drosophila female reproductive tract proteome outside of the melanogaster group which also shows significant divergence between species. We then assessed the utility of species-specific compared to single species query databases for protein identification and quantification.
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Project description:Globally invasive Aedes aegypti mosquitoes disseminate numerous arboviruses that impact human health. One promising method to control Ae. aegypti populations is transinfection with the intracellular bacterium Wolbachia pipientis, a symbiont that naturally infects ~40-52% of insects but is normally absent from Ae. aegypti. Transinfection of Ae. aegypti with the wMel Wolbachia strain induces cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI), allowing infected individuals to rapidly invade native populations. Further, wMel Wolbachia-infected females display refractoriness to medically relevant arboviruses. Thus, wMel Wolbachia-infected Ae. aegypti are being released in several areas to replace native populations, thereby suppressing disease transmission by this species. Wolbachia is reported to have minimal effects on Ae. aegypti fertility, but its influence on other reproductive processes is unknown. Female insects undergo several post-mating physiological and behavioral changes required for optimal fertility. Post-mating responses (PMRs) in female insects are typically elicited by receipt of male seminal fluid proteins (SFPs) transferred with sperm during mating, but can be modified by other factors, such as adult age, nutritional status, and microbiome composition. To assess how Wolbachia infection influences Ae. aegypti female PMRs, we collected wMel Wolbachia-infected Ae. aegypti from the field in Medellín, Colombia and introduced the bacterium into our laboratory strain. We found that Wolbachia influences female fecundity, fertility, and re-mating incidence. Further, we observed that Wolbachia significantly extends longevity of virgin females. Changes in female PMRs are not due to defects in sperm transfer by infected males, or sperm storage by infected females. Using proteomic methods to examine the seminal proteome of infected males, we found that Wolbachia infection has a moderate effect on SFP composition. However, we identified 125 Wolbachia proteins that are paternally transferred to females by infected males. Surprisingly, the CI factor proteins (Cifs), were not detected in the ejaculates of Wolbachia-infected males. Our findings indicate that Wolbachia infection of Ae. aegypti alters female post-mating responses, potentially influencing control programs that utilize Wolbachia-infected individuals.
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