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Aedes aegypti dopa decarboxylase: gene structure and regulation
Author(s) -
Ferdig M. T.,
Taft A. S.,
Smartt C. T.,
Lowenberger C. A.,
Li J.,
Zhang J.,
Christensen B. M.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
insect molecular biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.955
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-2583
pISSN - 0962-1075
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2583.2000.00187.x
Subject(s) - biology , aedes aegypti , ecdysone , gene , ecdysone receptor , transcription (linguistics) , aromatic l amino acid decarboxylase , genetics , microbiology and biotechnology , transcription factor , dopamine , endocrinology , botany , linguistics , philosophy , nuclear receptor , larva
Dopa decarboxylase converts l ‐dopa to dopamine, a precursor molecule for diverse biological activities in insects including neurotransmission and a variety of tanning reactions required for development, reproduction and defence against parasites. Herein, we report the cloning and sequencing of the Aedes aegypti Ddc gene, including 2.1 kb of the upstream promoter region. The transcribed region of the gene spans more than 16 kb and contains five exons. In situ hybridization localizes the blood‐meal‐induced ovarian transcription of this gene to the follicular epithelial cells surrounding individual oocytes. Ovary tissue transcription of Ddc is increased in response to injection of 20‐hydroxyecdysone to levels equal to those observed for blood‐fed controls, however coinjection with the translational inhibitor cycloheximide negates the effect, indicating an indirect regulatory role for this hormone. Clusters of putative ecdysone‐responsive elements and zinc‐finger binding domains for the products of Broad‐Complex gene family are identified in the 5′‐promoter region. These elements are discussed in the context of common insect Ddc regulatory mechanisms.