Premium
The insect HR38 nuclear receptor, a member of the NR4A subfamily, is a synchronizer of reproductive activity in a moth
Author(s) -
Gassias Edmundo,
Durand Nicolas,
Demondion Elodie,
Bourgeois Thomas,
Bozzolan Françoise,
Debernard Stéphane
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
the febs journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.981
H-Index - 204
eISSN - 1742-4658
pISSN - 1742-464X
DOI - 10.1111/febs.14648
Subject(s) - biology , agrotis ipsilon , pheromone , sex pheromone , mating , insect , subfamily , spermatophore , medicine , microbiology and biotechnology , zoology , endocrinology , genetics , ecology , lepidoptera genitalia , noctuidae , gene , cutworm
In the male moth, Agrotis ipsilon , the behavioural response and neuron sensitivity within the olfactory centres, the antennal lobes ( AL s), to female sex pheromone increase with age, in correlation with the maturation of sex accessory glands ( SAG s). By contrast, newly mated males cease to be attracted to sex pheromone and remate when their SAG s are refilled during the next night. The insect hormone receptor 38 ( HR 38), an ortholog of the vertebrate NR 4A receptors, is a component of ecdysteroid signalling pathway which controls adult male physiology and behaviour. Here, we cloned the A. ipsilon HR 38 ( Ai HR 38 ) and explored its function in the coordination of reproductive events in the male. Ai HR 38 was detected in SAG s and AL s, and where its amount raised with age, in parallel with SAG protein content and sex pheromone responsiveness. By contrast, the AL and SAG Ai HR 38 expressions declined at 0–2 h after mating, in linking with depletion of SAG protein reserves and loss of sensitivity to sex pheromone. The increased AL and SAG Ai HR 38 expressions at 20–24 h postmating coincided with replenishing of SAG s and recovery of sensitivity to sex pheromone for a new mating. Moreover, Ai HR 38 knockdown resulted in reduction in SAG protein amount and disruption of sex pheromone‐orientated flight. These results show that the insect HR 38 is essential both for SAG activity, probably by controlling the protein synthesis, and display of male sexual behaviour, and that the concomitant regulation of its expression within SAG s and olfactory centres contributes to synchronisation between fertility and sexual activity. Database The nucleotide sequence of Agrotis ipsilon HR 38 is available in the DDBJ / EMBL /GenBank databases under the accession number MF402845 .