Implications of the Tribolium genome project for pest biology

Implications of the Tribolium genome project for pest biology The universal availability of the complete Tribolium castaneum genome sequence assembly and annotation (Richards et al., 2008) and concomitant development of the versatile Tribolium genome browser, BeetleBase (Kim et al., 2010, http://beetlebase.org/) open new realms of possibility for stored product pest control by greatly simplifying the task of connecting biology and behavior with underlying molecular mechanisms. This genome has enabled sequence similarity searches that have resulted in a flood of new discovery involving thousands of genes with important functions in digestion, osmoregulation, metamorphosis, olfaction, xenobiotic metabolism, vision, and embryonic and larval growth and development. The value of the T. castaneum genome sequence is greatly enhanced by the availability of a sophisticated functional genomic toolkit for laboratory studies of this insect. These tools include high-resolution physical and genetic maps, genomic and cDNA libraries, balancer chromosomes, and effective and reliable techniques for specific knockout of any target gene via RNA interference (RNAi). In this paper we briefly discuss just two areas of Tribolium biology research that are being revitalized by the availability of the genome sequence, namely olfaction and exoskeleton, or “smell and skin”

The Relationship between Inferior Vena Cava Distensibility and Arterial Blood Pressure

The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between the inferior vena cava distensibility and blood pressure. Six Japanese healthy males volunteered to participate in this study. We measured the cross-sectional area of inferior vena cava (CSAivc) and blood pressure at rest and during passive leg raising in supine position. We calculated the change rates of each parameter, based on the value at rest in supine position. We observed a negative correlation between the change rate of CSAivc and systolic blood pressure (P<0.05). These results suggest that the inferior vena cava distensibility affects partially systolic blood pressure

A multicopper oxidase-related protein is essential for insect viability, longevity and ovary development

Citation: Peng Z, Green PG, Arakane Y, Kanost MR, Gorman MJ (2014) A Multicopper Oxidase-Related Protein Is Essential for Insect Viability, Longevity and Ovary Development. PLOS ONE 9(10): e111344. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0111344Typical multicopper oxidases (MCOs) have ten conserved histidines and one conserved cysteine that coordinate four copper atoms. These copper ions are required for oxidase activity. During our studies of insect MCOs, we discovered a gene that we named multicopper oxidase-related protein (MCORP). MCORPs share sequence similarity with MCOs, but lack many of the copper-coordinating residues. We identified MCORP orthologs in many insect species, but not in other invertebrates or vertebrates. We predicted that MCORPs would lack oxidase activity due to the absence of copper-coordinating residues. To test this prediction, we purified recombinant Tribolium castaneum (red flour beetle) MCORP and analyzed its enzymatic activity using a variety of substrates. As expected, no oxidase activity was detected. To study MCORP function in vivo, we analyzed expression profiles of TcMCORP and Anopheles gambiae (African malaria mosquito) MCORP, and assessed RNAi-mediated knockdown phenotypes. We found that both MCORPs are constitutively expressed at a low level in all of the tissues we analyzed. Injection of TcMCORP dsRNA into larvae resulted in 100% mortality prior to adult eclosion, with death occurring mainly during the pharate pupal stage or late pharate adult stage. Injection of TcMCORP dsRNA into pharate pupae resulted in the death of approximately 20% of the treated insects during the pupal to adult transition and a greatly shortened life span for the remaining insects. In addition, knockdown of TcMCORP in females prevented oocyte maturation and, thus, greatly decreased the number of eggs laid. These results indicate that TcMCORP is an essential gene and that its function is required for reproduction. An understanding of the role MCORP plays in insect physiology may help to develop new strategies for controlling insect pests

Effects of Eating or Skipping Breakfast on Heart Rate and Oxygen Uptake

The purpose of this study was to compare changes in heart rate, oxygen uptake, blood pressure and oral temperature between subjects eating breakfast and subjects skipping breakfast when they exercise each day at 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM. The study design included two different groups, a breakfast group and a skipping group. Subjects rested for five minutes, and they exercised on a pendulum ergometer for twenty minutes. After exercising, the resistance was returned to zero for a one minute cool down followed by five more minutes of complete rest(recovery phase). Oral temperatures of the skipping group were lower than those of the breakfast group at 11:00 AM. Diet induced thermogenesis (DIT), which increases core body temperature, is generated by eating breakfast. In the skipping group, the resting heart rates at 11:00 AM were lower than at 2:00 PM. A significant difference in heart rate after the first minute of exercise was seen between 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM in the skipping group. These results suggested that when skipping breakfast, the heart rate response immediately after beginning exercise is slow in the morning. Although all subjects did cooling down for one minute after exercising, oxygen uptake during the recovery phase in the skipping group at 11:00 AM was significantly higher than at rest. These results suggest that eating breakfast has a physiological influence on both heart rate and oxygen uptake

Observation of Fermi-surface-dependent nodeless superconducting gaps in Ba0.6K0.4Fe2As2

The recent discovery of superconductivity in iron-arsenic compounds below a transition temperature (Tc) as high as 55K ended the monopoly of copper oxides (cuprates) in the family of high-Tc superconductors. A critical issue in understanding this new superconductor, as in the case of cuprates, is the nature, in particular the symmetry and orbital dependence, of the superconducting gap. There are conflicting experimental results, mostly from indirect measurements of the low energy excitation gap, ranging from one gap to two gaps, from line nodes to nodeless gap function in momentum space. Here we report a direct observation of the superconducting gap, including its momentum, temperature, and Fermi surface (FS) dependence in Ba0.6K0.4Fe2As2 (Tc = 37 K) using angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy. We find two superconducting gaps with different values: a large gap (~ 12 meV) on the two small hole-like and electron-like FS sheets, and a small gap (~ 6 meV) on the large hole-like FS. Both gaps, closing simultaneously at the bulk Tc, are nodeless and nearly isotropic around their respective FS sheets. The isotropic pairing interactions are strongly orbital dependent, as the ratio 2Delta/kBTc switches from weak to strong coupling on different bands. The same and surprisingly large superconducting gap due to strong pairing on the two small FS, which are connected by the (pi, 0) spin-density-wave vector in the parent compound, strongly suggests that the pairing mechanism originates from the inter-band interactions between these two nested FS sheets.Comment: 4 figure

Infinity Cancellation, Type I' Compactification and String S-Matrix Functional

Nonvanishing tadpoles and possible infinities associated in the multiparticle amplitudes are discussed with regard to the disk and $RP^{2}$ diagrams of the Type I' compactification. We find that the infinity cancellation of $SO(32)$ type $I$ theory extends to this case as well despite the presence of tadpoles localized in the D-brane world-volume and the orientifold surfaces. Formalism of string S-matrix generating functional is presented to find a consistent string background as c-number source function: we find this only treats the cancellation of the tadpoles in the linearized approximation. Our formalism automatically provides representation of the string amplitudes on this background to all orders in $\alpha'$.Comment: 18 pages, Latex, more references adde

Two major cuticular proteins are required for assembly of horizontal laminae and vertical pore canals in rigid cuticle of Tribolium castaneum

The insect exoskeleton is composed of cuticle primarily formed from structural cuticular proteins (CPs) and the polysaccharide chitin. Two CPs, TcCPR27 and TcCPR18, are major proteins present in the elytron (highly sclerotized and pigmented modified forewing) as well as the pronotum (dorsal sclerite of the prothorax) and ventral abdominal cuticle of the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum. Both CPs belong to the CPR family, which includes proteins that have an amino acid sequence motif known as the Rebers & Riddiford (R&R) consensus sequence. Injection of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) for TcCPR27 and TcCPR18 resulted in insects with shorter, wrinkled, warped and less rigid elytra than those from control insects. To gain a more comprehensive understanding of the roles of CPs in cuticle assembly, we analyzed for the precise localization of TcCPR27 and the ultrastructural architecture of cuticle in TcCPR27- and TcCPR18-deficient elytra. Transmission electron microscopic analysis combined with immunodetection using goldlabeled secondary antibody revealed that TcCPR27 is present in dorsal elytral procuticle both in the horizontal laminae and in vertical pore canals. dsRNA-mediated RNA interference (RNAi) of TcCPR27 resulted in abnormal electron-lucent laminae and pore canals in elytra except for the boundary between these two structures in which electron-dense molecule(s) apparently accumulated. Insects subjected to RNAi for TcCPR18 also had disorganized laminae and pore canals in the procuticle of elytra. Similar ultrastructural defects were also observed in other body wall regions with rigid cuticle such as the thorax and legs of adult T. castaneum. TcCPR27 and TcCPR18 are required for proper formation of the horizontal chitinous laminae and vertical pore canals that are critical for formation and stabilization of rigid adult cuticle

Heterotic Matrix String Theory

M-theory suggests the large N limit of the matrix description of a collection of N Type IA D-particles should provide a nonperturbative formulation of heterotic string theory. In this paper states in the matrix theory corresponding to fundamental heterotic strings are identified, and their interactions are studied. Comments are made about analogous states in Type IIA string theory, which correspond to bound states of D-particles and D-eightbranes.Comment: 13 pages, harvmac (b mode), references adde

Cuticular protein with a low complexity sequence becomes cross-linked during insect cuticle sclerotization and is required for the adult molt

Citation: Mun, S., Noh, M. Y., Dittmer, N. T., Muthukrishnan, S., Kramer, K. J., Kanost, M. R., & Arakane, Y. (2015). Cuticular protein with a low complexity sequence becomes cross-linked during insect cuticle sclerotization and is required for the adult molt. Scientific Reports, 5, 11. doi:10.1038/srep10484In the insect cuticle, structural proteins (CPs) and the polysaccharide chitin are the major components. It has been hypothesized that CPs are cross-linked to other CPs and possibly to chitin by quinones or quinone methides produced by the laccase2-mediated oxidation of N-acylcatechols. In this study we investigated functions of TcCP30, the third most abundant CP in protein extracts of elytra (wing covers) from Tribolium castaneum adults. The mature TcCP30 protein has a low complexity and highly polar amino acid sequence. TcCP30 is localized with chitin in horizontal laminae and vertically oriented columnar structures in rigid cuticles, but not in soft and membranous cuticles. Immunoblot analysis revealed that TcCP30 undergoes laccase2-mediated cross-linking during cuticle maturation in vivo, a process confirmed in vitro using recombinant rTcCP30. We identified TcCPR27 and TcCPR18, the two most abundant proteins in the elytra, as putative crosslinking partners of TcCP30. RNAi for the TcCP30 gene had no effect on larval and pupal growth and development. However, during adult eclosion, similar to 70% of the adults were unable to shed their exuvium and died. These results support the hypothesis that TcCP30 plays an integral role as a cross-linked structural protein in the formation of lightweight rigid cuticle of the beetle