2. Academic Validation
  3. Egfr signaling promotes juvenile hormone biosynthesis in the German cockroach

Egfr signaling promotes juvenile hormone biosynthesis in the German cockroach

  • BMC Biol. 2022 Dec 13;20(1):278. doi: 10.1186/s12915-022-01484-z.
Zhaoxin Li # 1 2 3,  Caisheng Zhou # 1,  Yumei Chen 1,  Wentao Ma 1,  Yunlong Cheng 1,  Jinxin Chen 1,  Yu Bai 1,  Wei Luo 1,  Na Li 4 5,  Erxia Du 6 7,  Sheng Li 8 9 10
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology & School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.
  • 2 Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangzhou, China.
  • 3 Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, China.
  • 4 Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology & School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China. [email protected].
  • 5 Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, China. [email protected].
  • 6 Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology & School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China. [email protected].
  • 7 Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangzhou, China. [email protected].
  • 8 Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, Institute of Insect Science and Technology & School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China. [email protected].
  • 9 Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangzhou, China. [email protected].
  • 10 Guangmeiyuan R&D Center, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental Biology and Applied Technology, South China Normal University, Meizhou, China. [email protected].
  • # Contributed equally.
PMID: 36514097 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-022-01484-z
Abstract

Background: In insects, an interplay between the activities of distinct Hormones, such as juvenile hormone (JH) and 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E), regulates the progression through numerous life history hallmarks. As a crucial endocrine factor, JH is mainly synthesized in the corpora allata (CA) to regulate multiple physiological and developmental processes, including molting, metamorphosis, and reproduction. During the last century, significant progress has been achieved in elucidating the JH signal transduction pathway, while less progress has been made in dissecting the regulatory mechanism of JH biosynthesis. Previous work has shown that receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) signaling regulates hormone biosynthesis in both insects and mammals. Here, we performed a systematic RNA interference (RNAi) screening to identify RTKs involved in regulating JH biosynthesis in the CA of adult Blattella germanica females.

Results: We found that the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is required for promoting JH biosynthesis in the CA of adult females. The EGF ligands Vein and Spitz activate EGFR, followed by Ras/Raf/ERK signaling, and finally activation of the downstream transcription factor Pointed (Pnt). Importantly, Pnt induces the transcriptional expression of two key enzyme-encoding genes in the JH biosynthesis pathway: juvenile hormone acid methyltransferase (JHAMT) and methyl farnesoate epoxidase (CYP15A1). Dual-luciferase reporter assay shows that Pnt is able to activate a promoter region of Jhamt. In addition, electrophoretic mobility shift assay confirms that Pnt directly binds to the - 941~ - 886 nt region of the Jhamt promoter.

Conclusions: This study reveals the detailed molecular mechanism of EGFR signaling in promoting JH biosynthesis in the German cockroach, shedding LIGHT on the intricate regulation of JH biosynthesis during insect development.

Keywords

Egfr signaling; JH; JHAMT; Pnt; Transcriptional regulation.

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