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mRNA profiles of piRNA pathway genes in emerald ash borer Agrilus planipennis
Author(s) -
Mittapalli Omprakash,
Mamidala Praveen,
Rajarapu Swapna Priya
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
insect science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.991
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1744-7917
pISSN - 1672-9609
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-7917.2011.01466.x
Subject(s) - biology , agrilus , piwi interacting rna , emerald ash borer , gene , insect , genetics , evolutionary biology , botany , buprestidae , rna interference , fraxinus , rna
Recent advances of Piwi‐interacting RNAs (piRNAs) have enabled a better understanding of their putative roles in the protection of germ cells against selfish genetic elements. The germ plasm proteins namely, PIWI and VASA, are key players in regulation of piRNAs. However, the biogenesis of piRNAs remains poorly understood. We report the characterization and the transcript profiles of a PIWI and VASA gene in various tissues and developmental stages of the emerald ash borer ( Agrilus planipennis ), an exotic invasive insect pest that has attained a high impact status worldwide. The deduced amino acid sequences of both these genes (herein referred to “ Ap PIWI and Ap VASA”) revealed homology with similar proteins from other insect and non‐insect taxa. Peak transcript levels for Ap PIWI and Ap VASA were observed in the ovaries (compared to the other tissues assayed) and in adults (compared to the other developmental stages assayed). To our knowledge this is the first report of profiling piRNA pathway genes in A. planipennis . These results provide new insights into the putative function of the PIWI and VASA proteins in insects.