Project description:During the over 300 million years of co-evolution between herbivorous insects and their host plants, a dynamic equilibrium of evolutionary arms race has been established. However, the co-adaptation between insects and their host plants is a complex process, often driven by multiple evolutionary mechanisms. We found that various lepidopteran pests that use maize as a host exhibit differential adaptation to the plant secondary metabolites, benzoxazinoids (BXs). Notably, the Spodoptera genus, including Spodoptera frugiperda (fall armyworm) and Spodoptera litura (cotton leafworm), demonstrate greater tolerance to BXs compared to other insects. Through comparative transcriptomic analysis of the midgut, we identified four candidate genes potentially involved in BXs detoxification in S. frugiperda. Subsequently, we confirmed two UGT genes, Sfru33T10 and Sfru33F32, as key players in BXs detoxification using CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technology. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that Sfru33T10 evolved independently within the Noctuidae family and is involved in the glycosylation of HDMBOA, while Sfru33F32 evolved independently within the Spodoptera genus and functions as a key detoxification enzyme responsible for the glycosylation of both DIMBOA and HMBOA. Our study demonstrates that the UGT gene family plays a crucial role in the adaptation of noctuid insects to maize, with multiple independent evolutionary events within the Noctuidae family and the Spodoptera genus contributing significantly to host adaptation.
2024-09-18 | GSE276946 | GEO
Project description:Genome Sequencing of the Malaysian Fall Armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda)
Project description:The fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda is one of the most severe economic pests of multiple crops globally. Control of this pest is often achieved using insecticides; however, over time, S. frugiperda has developed resistance to new mode of action compounds, including diamides. Previous studies have indicated diamide resistance is a complex developmental process involving multiple detoxification genes. Still, the mechanism underlying the possible involvement of microRNAs in post-transcriptional regulation of resistance has not yet been elucidated. In this study, a global screen of microRNAs (miRNAs) revealed 109 known and 63 novel miRNAs. Nine miRNAs (four known and five novel) were differentially expressed between insecticide-resistant and -susceptible strains. Gene Ontology analysis predicted putative target transcripts of the differentially expressed miRNAs encoding significant genes belonging to detoxification pathways. Additionally, miRNAs are involved in response to diamide exposure, indicating they are probably associated with the detoxification pathway. Thus, this study provides comprehensive evidence for the link between repressed miRNA expression and induced target transcripts that possibly mediate diamide resistance through post-transcriptional regulation. These findings highlight important clues for further research to unravel the roles and mechanisms of miRNAs in conferring diamide resistance.
Project description:Insect gut microbiota plays important roles in acquiring nutrition, preventing pathogens infection, immune responses, and communicating with the environment. Gut microbiota can be affected by some external factors such as foods, temperature, and antibiotics. Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is an important destructive pest of grain crops all over the world. The function of gut microbiota in S. frugiperda remains to be investigated. In this study, we fed the S. frugiperda with the antibiotic mixture (penicillin, gentamicin, rifampicin, and streptomycin) to perturb the gut microbiota, and further examined the effect of dysbiosis in gut microbiota on the gene expression of S. frugiperda by RNA sequencing. We found the composition and diversity of the gut bacterial community were changed in S. frugiperda after antibiotics treatmen, and the expression of genes related to energy and metabolic process were affected after antibiotics exposure in S. frugiperda. Our work will help understand the role of gut microbiota in insects.
2021-08-06 | GSE175476 | GEO
Project description:Genome sequencing of Spodoptera frugiperda Benzon susceptible (fall armyworm) larval principal pseudohaplotype
| PRJNA867421 | ENA
Project description:Identification and characterization of highly active promoters from the fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda