Abstract
Abstract We have chemically synthesized and expressed three chimeric genes, mag4, sat2, and ssh1, that encode secretable polypeptides with neurotoxic activity in insects. mag4 encodes the μ-Aga-IV toxin from the spider Agelenopsis aperta and has a mellitin signal sequence from the honey bee Apis mellifera. The other two genes, sat2 and ssh1, encode As II and Sh I toxins from the sea anemones Anemonia sulcata and Stichodactyla helianthus, respectively, and have a sarcotoxin signal sequence from the flesh fly Sarcophaga peregrina. The synthetic genes were inserted into a nonessential site in the genome of the Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis virus under the control of an enhanced polyhedrin promoter. In all cases, insect cells infected with recombinant viruses produced toxins, and larvae infected with the recombinant viruses died more quickly than larvae infected with wild-type virus. The relative efficacy of the mag4 -expressing recombinant was host-dependent. In Trichoplusia ni, sat2 expression was most effective, providing a 38.4% reduction in time to death compared to the wild-type virus, while in Spodoptera frugiperda, the mag4 -expressing recombinant was most effective, exhibiting a 37% reduction in time to death.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
