Nezara viridula (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) transcriptomic analysis and neuropeptidomics

Andrés Lavore,Rolando Rivera-Pomar,Victorio Palacio,Maria Ines Catalano,Sheila Ons,Lucila Perez-Gianmarco,Natalia Esponda-Behrens

doi:10.1038/s41598-018-35386-4

Abstract

Stinkbugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) are of major economic importance as pest of crops. Among the species composing the stinkbug complex, Nezara viridula is one of the most abundant in Brazil, Argentina and the Southern USA. However, this species has been poorly characterized at the genetic and physiological level. Here we sequenced and analyzed the complete transcriptome of N. viridula male and female adults. We identified neuropeptide precursor genes and G-protein coupled receptors for neuropeptides in this transcriptome. Mature neuropeptides were identified in N. viridula brain extracts by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. We also analyzed the neuropeptide precursor complement in the genome sequence of Halyomorpha halys, another pentatomid of economic relevance. We compared the results in both pentatomids with the well-characterized neuropeptide repertoire from the kissing bug Rhodnius prolixus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae). We identified both group-specific features (which could be related to the different feeding habits) and similarities that could be characteristic of Heteroptera. This work contributes to a deeper knowledge of the genetic information of these pests, with a focus on neuroendocrine system characterization.

Highlights

Stinkbugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) are of major economic importance as pest of crops
We analyzed neuropeptide precursors in H. halys genome, and compared the results in both pentatomids with the well-characterized neuropeptide repertoire from the kissing bug R. prolixus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae)[14,18,19,20,21]
The transcript NvA21 is closely related to DromeTrissin-R; considering that trissin neuropeptide has not been detected in Hemiptera to date, we propose that NvA21 could be a TK-R, given its sequence and configuration in the phylogenetic analysis (Fig. 5)

Summary

Introduction

Stinkbugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) are of major economic importance as pest of crops. We compared the results in both pentatomids with the well-characterized neuropeptide repertoire from the kissing bug Rhodnius prolixus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) We identified both groupspecific features (which could be related to the different feeding habits) and similarities that could be characteristic of Heteroptera. In order to protect food sources, human health and natural environment, an ideal insecticide should be species-specific, biodegradable and less prone to generate resistant populations Neuropeptides and their receptors (mainly G-protein coupled receptors; GPCRs), and tyrosine-kinase and guanylate-ciyclase receptors) regulate critical physiological processes in insects (see[14]). The identification and characterization of neuroendocrine-related genes in genomes and transcriptomes have been proposed as the first step in the “genome-to-lead” strategy for achieving new insecticidal solutions[17] This strategy is harnessed by the use of next-generation sequencing techniques in the study of harmful insects. This work contributes with genomic information and structural knowledge on the neuroendocrine system, a necessary step for advancing in molecular, biochemical and physiological studies with these species

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Results

Conclusion