Abstract
Chitin synthase is a critical enzyme that catalyzes N-acetylglucosamine to form chitin, which plays an important role in the growth and development of insects. In this study, we identified a chitin synthase gene (CHS) with a complete open reading frame (ORF) of 3180 bp from the genome database of Diaphorina citri, encoding a protein of 1059 amino acid residues with the appropriate signature motifs (EDR and QRRRW). Reverse transcription-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) analysis suggested that D. citri CHS (DcCHS) was expressed throughout all developmental stages and all tissues. DcCHS had the highest expression level in the integument and fifth-instar nymph stage. Furthermore, the effects of diflubenzuron (DFB) on D. citri mortality and DcCHS expression level were investigated using fifth-instar nymph through leaf dip bioassay, and the results revealed that the nymph exposed to DFB had the highest mortality compared with control group (Triton-100). Silencing of DcCHS by RNA interference resulted in malformed phenotypes and increased mortality with decreased molting rate. In addition, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) also revealed corresponding ultrastructural defects. Our results suggest that DcCHS might play an important role in the development of D. citri and can be used as a potential target for psyllid control.
Highlights
The Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Liviidae), is a notorious pest across Asia, USA, and Brazil, causing severe economic losses in the citrus industry [1]
The cDNA sequence of D. citri CHS (DcCHS) (XP_017303059) contains an open reading frame (ORF) of 3180 bp encoding a protein of 1059 amino acid residues with a predicted molecular weight (MW) of 129.9 kDa and pI of 5.02 (Figure 1A)
The cDNA sequence of DcCHS was identified from the genome database of D. citri
Summary
The Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Liviidae), is a notorious pest across Asia, USA, and Brazil, causing severe economic losses in the citrus industry [1]. The greatest threat of ACP arises from the transmission of “Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas)”, which causes citrus greening disease, called huanglongbing (HLB) [2]. Up to this date, psyllid control plays a leading role to prevent HLB from spreading. The application of insecticides is the most widely followed option for reducing ACP populations. The improper use of insecticide will lead to pest resistance, human poisoning, and environmental pollution [3,4]. There is a great need to find environmentally friendly methods to control the citrus psyllid
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