Identification of neuropeptide receptors from the brain of the bean pod borer, Maruca vitrata

Abstract

• The brain transcriptomes of Maruca vitrata were analyzed. • Twenty neuropeptide receptors exhibited significant expression level in the brain. • The brain expressed various neuropeptide receptors belonging to GPCR family. • Neuropeptide receptors in the brain can be putative control targets. Neuropeptides in the insect brain have been involved in various physiological activities such as circadian rhythm, learning and memory, olfactory processing, feeding behavior, etc. Neuropeptides bind to their receptors which transduce their signals, resulting in behavioral and physiological changes. To identify neuropeptides and examine their diurnal expression from the brain of Maruca vitrata , the brain transcriptomes collected from total RNAs with 4 h interval were analyzed. Total trimmed reads from six brain transcriptomes were 0.69 billion and 40,487 contigs exhibiting significant FPKM value were identified. Twenty contigs showing significant expression level were identified as neuropeptide receptors including tachykinin-like peptide receptor, diuretic hormone receptor, SIFamide receptor, sex peptide receptor, somatostatin receptor, RYamide receptor, etc. These receptors mainly belonged to G protein-coupled receptor family. Relative expressions of neuropeptide receptors were evaluated based on FPKM values. Expressions of various neuropeptide receptors in the brain can provide information on putative control targets for insect pests.