Domestic Insect Research Articles

Advances in the Arms Race Between Silkworm and Baculovirus.

Insects are the largest group of animals. Nearly all organisms, including insects, have viral pathogens. An important domesticated economic insect is the silkworm moth Bombyx mori. B. mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) is a typical baculovirus and a primary silkworm pathogen. It causes major economic losses in sericulture. Baculoviruses are used in biological pest control and as a bioreactor. Silkworm and baculovirus comprise a well-established model of insect–virus interactions. Several recent studies have focused on this model and provided novel insights into viral infections and host defense. Here, we focus on baculovirus invasion, silkworm immune response, baculovirus evasion of host immunity, and enhancement of antiviral efficacy. We also discuss major issues remaining and future directions of research on silkworm antiviral immunity. Elucidation of the interaction between silkworm and baculovirus furnishes a theoretical basis for targeted pest control, enhanced pathogen resistance in economically important insects, and bioreactor improvement.

Comparative transcriptomic analysis of the l-4i silkworm (Lepidoptera: Bombyx mori) mutants and its wild-type strain P33 by RNA-Seq

The silkworm (Bombyx mori) is a domesticated holometabolous insect, and more than 400 Mendelian mutations have been identified. Investigating the mechanism behind these silkworm mutants is essential for understanding the development of silkworms and other lepidopterans, and lethal genes could be used for pest control. The lethal silkworm mutant in the fourth instar (l-4i) has been recently found; however, the underlying mechanism is not yet clear. Herein, we studied the l-4i mutant and its wild-type strain P33 using RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). Our results revealed that 2013 genes were significantly downregulated, and 20 biological processes, including spliceosomal snRNP assembly, protein folding and protein catabolic process, were significantly enriched in these downregulated genes. Moreover, 2405 genes were significantly upregulated in the l-4i mutant, and 20 biological processes, including purine nucleobase metabolic process, nucleoside metabolic process and de novo IMP biosynthetic process, were significantly enriched in these upregulated genes. The study suggests that the imbalance of multiple biological processes and pathways and abnormal protein generation from RNA alternative splicing may cause the death of the l-4i mutant.

Molecular diversity and evolutionary trends of cysteine-rich peptides from the venom glands of Chinese spider Heteropoda venatoria

Heteropoda venatoria in the family Sparassidae is highly valued in pantropical countries because the species feed on domestic insect pests. Unlike most other species of Araneomorphae, H. venatoria uses the great speed and strong chelicerae (mouthparts) with toxin glands to capture the insects instead of its web. Therefore, H. venatoria provides unique opportunities for venom evolution research. The venom of H. venatoria was explored by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization tandem time-of-flight and analyzing expressed sequence tags. The 154 sequences coding cysteine-rich peptides (CRPs) revealed 24 families based on the phylogenetic analyses of precursors and cysteine frameworks in the putative mature regions. Intriguingly, four kinds of motifs are first described in spider venom. Furthermore, combining the diverse CRPs of H. venatoria with previous spider venom peptidomics data, the structures of precursors and the patterns of cysteine frameworks were analyzed. This work revealed the dynamic evolutionary trends of venom CRPs in H. venatoria: the precursor has evolved an extended mature peptide with more cysteines, and a diminished or even vanished propeptides between the signal and mature peptides; and the CRPs evolved by multiple duplications of an ancestral ICK gene as well as recruitments of non-toxin genes.

Nutritional composition of Apis mellifera adansonii L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae) from three ecological zones of Nigeria

The honey bee is an important economic and domesticated insect. This insect has been gaining attention as a potential nutritional source in different parts of the world. This study therefore evaluated the nutritional and anti-nutritional composition of the tissue of honey bees, Apis mellifera adansonii, from the rainforest, guinea savannah and derived savannah zones of Nigeria. Honey bee samples were collected from fully colonised colonies of two different apiaries each from the rainforest, guinea and derived savannah zones of Nigeria for chemical analyses. Proximate, minerals composition, vitamin and secondary metabolites composition were estimated using standard methods. The levels of proximate compositions (fat, ash, crude fibre, crude protein and carbohydrate contents), minerals, vitamins and secondary metabolites recorded in the honey bees from the three ecological zones were not significantly different. Potassium, chloride and calcium respectively were higher in the honey bee tissue than the other minerals tested. However, the level of phytate was higher in the honey bee samples than the regulatory safe level. Based on the results of this study, honey bees from the studied ecological zones of Nigeria are equally nutritious.

Potential role of domestic insects in transmission of the novel coronavirus disease (covid-19) to humans

Potential role of domestic insects in transmission of the novel coronavirus disease (covid-19) to humans

Chronic health risk comparison between China and Denmark on dietary exposure to chlorpyrifos

Chlorpyrifos is one of the most heavily used pesticides in domestic and agricultural insect prevention globally. Given the potential neurotoxicity of chlorpyrifos and its high detection rates in food and drinking water, health risks attributable to chlorpyrifos residue in Chinese drinking water and food in both China and Denmark were assessed in this study. Mixed left-censored handling models were used to deal with the non-detected values in chlorpyrifos concentrations. Results show that chronic exposure imputed to chlorpyrifos residue is much lower than the reference dose, and will thus not pose appreciable health risk to the consumer. Compared to the total exposure from chlorpyrifos in drinking water and food sources, chronic exposure from drinking water sources in China accounts for 0–4.4%. Health risk owing to chlorpyrifos in food within China is 6-7-fold higher than in Denmark, and this coincides with the fact that all application of chlorpyrifos is banned in Denmark, in contrast to China. However, the Danish consumers are still exposed from imported food items. The main health risk contributors in China are the food groups of Grains and grain-based products and Vegetable and vegetable products, while the main chronic health risk contributor in Denmark is the food group of imported fruit and fruit products.

Characterization of indigenous silkworm (Bombyx mori L.) breeds on the basis of morphological traits

The morphological characterization among domesticated insect like silkworm (Bombyx mori L.) is an important aspect for selection of suitable parents for breeding programme. The present study was conducted on twenty bivoltine silkworm breeds to estimate the extent relationship by morphological characterization. Eighteen morphological traits both qualitative and quantitative viz., egg shape, chorion colour, colour of the newly hatched larva, larval marking, cocoon colour, cocoon shape, pupa colour and shape, colour of male and female moth, fecundity, hatching, larva weight 5th day, –th instar duration, total larval period, percentage of malformed cocoons, pupation rate, single cocoon weight, single shell weight and shell percent were studied and data revealed significant variability among the breeds. Maximum Euclidean distance was observed between NB4D2 and CSR19 (163.25) followed by CSR19 and UDHEY-5 (145.13) and minimum between UDHEY-1 and UDHEY-3 (4.20). The dendrogram of phenotypic data grouped all breeds in two clusters; Cluster A and B. Cluster A was sub divided into two sub-clusters cluster AI and cluster A II. Cluster A I contained eight breeds and Cluster AII eleven breeds. Cluster B comprised of one breed CSR19. In PCA the genetic divergence was maximum between NB4D2 and CSR19, whereas it was minimum in UDHEY-7 and ND2. PCoA results depicted CSR19 and SPO having greater divergence, whereas it was minimum between UDHEY-7 and ND2. On the basis of Euclidean distance metric the performance of the breeds; CSR19, NB4D2, PO3, UDHEY-8, SPO, UDHEY-4, ND2, CC1, UDHEY-2, UDHEY-5, UDHEY-7, UDHEY-6 have been identified as promising breeds and are recommended for further breeding to boost bivoltine silk production.

Comparative mitochondrial genomes provide new insights into the true wild progenitor and origin of domestic silkworm Bombyx mori.

The domestication of domestic silkworm Bombyx mori, the only truly domesticated insect, is a distinctive event in agricultural history. The domestication and origin of domestic silkworm remains unclear, although it has connected with human for ~5500 years. In the present study, we would like to highlight our evidence from whole mitochondrial genome for the presence of two genetically distinctive subtypes in Chinese B. mandarina populations, corresponding to northern Chinese B. mandarina and southern Chinese B. mandarina, respectively. The mitochondrial genomes and mitochondrial phylogenetic tree provide a solid molecular evidence that the true wild ancestor of domestic silkworm is northern Chinese B. mandarina, rather than southern Chinese B. mandarina, thus implying that the early domestication event may have occurred in northern China. Our finding provides new insights into the origin and evolution of domestic silkworm.

Chlorpyrifos stimulates expression of vitamin D3 receptor in skin cells irradiated with UVB

Skin, the organ responsible for vitamin D synthesis, is fully exposed to many xenobiotics, e.g. polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and pesticides. A broad spectrum organophosphorus insecticides (OP's), such as chlorpyrifos (CPS), are commonly used in agriculture and to control domestic insects. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of chlorpyrifos, on the expression of vitamin D3 receptor (VDR) in human keratinocytes cell line HaCaT and fibroblasts cell line BJ. The impact of CPS and UVB radiation on cell viability were examined by Neutral Red assay. The effect of CPS on VDR expression was evaluated by RT-qPCR and flow cytometry (FC). The presented study demonstrated that exposure to CPS and UVB significantly affects the viability of HaCaT and BJ cells lines. Results also revealed that exposure to CPS induced the expression at mRNA and protein level of VDR nuclear receptor in both cell lines exposed to UVB. In HaCaT incubated with 250 μM CPS and 15 mJ/cm2 UVB, the relative VDR expression was ∼2-fold higher; whereas in BJ incubated with 250 μM CPS and 20 mJ/cm2, UVB was∼3-fold higher. Results from FC confirmed this result, as VDR expression increased by ~250% in HaCaT incubated with 250 μM CPS and 20 mJ/cm2 UVB, and in BJ incubated with 250 μM CPS, and 20 mJ/cm2 UVB cells VDR expression increased by ~190%, compared with control. It can therefore be concluded that OPs pesticide might interfere with vitamin D3 metabolism in skin cells.

Implications of genetic diversity in the improvement of silkworm Bombyx mori L.

Improvement programs depend on characterizing genetic resources, this process being the fundamental basis for determining the diversity and genetic divergence of such resources and thereby enabling a rigorous, efficient selection of the parentals that, through hybridization, will go on to enhance heterosis. The aim was to use the resulting hybrids to improve population mean with respect to genetic parameters used for the qualitative and quantitative traits that affect commercial natural silk production. Bombyx mori L. is a domesticated insect of global economic importance, mainly due to the production of natural silk but also for its relevance in rural agro-industry in tropical and subtropical regions. Non-textile uses currently being developed are also to the fore. These relate to such fields as science and academia, biomedicine, biotechnology, the pharmacological industry and cosmetics. With this in mind, the aim of the current article was to provide a general context for sericulture and in so doing give an overview of the silk production scenario nationally and go on to describe the importance of genetic diversity to silkworm breeding programs and to demonstrate how genetic drift, inbreeding, and artificial selection contribute to loss of genetic diversity in B. mori

Dichlorvos toxicity: A public health perspective.

Pesticides are used in agriculture and in domestic pest control. Dichlorvos, an organophosphate, is a predominant pesticide used in domestic insect control in developing countries. Acute and prolonged exposure may lead to death, genotoxic, neurological, reproductive, carcinogenic, immunological, hepatic, renal, respiratory, metabolic, dermal and other systemic effects. Its toxicity is due to the ability of the compound to inhibit acetyl cholinesterase at cholinergic junction of the nervous system. This study is a review of the toxicological effects of dichlorvos in a public health perspective.

Discovery of a New Species of Telenomus (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae) Parasitic on Eggs of Bombyx mandarina and Bombyx mori (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) in Japan and Taiwan.

We reared a Telenomus species from eggs of Bombyx mandarina (Moore) (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) and Bombyx mori (Linnaeus) (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) in Japan, and from eggs of B. mandarina in Taiwan. Morphological examination revealed that this Telenomus species is new to science. In this article, we describe it as Telenomus moricolus Matsuo et Hirose, sp. nov. Because B. mandarina is considered to be an ancestor of B. mori, a domestic insect, it is reasonable to assume that B. mandarina is an original host of T. moricolus. This is the second discovery of an egg parasitoid attacking wild and domesticated silkworms, following the first discovery of T. theophilae, a Chinese species. The significance of the discovery of T. moricolus is discussed in relation to examining the effects of host-insect domestication on egg parasitism.

Linguistic and cultural aspects in animistic idioms defying personal character traits in English and Ukrainian

The problem of studying national and ethnic-cultural components is an actual trend in contemporary linguistic studies, since linguistic elements manifest distinct national marking. The idea of language and culture interconnection belongs primarily to William von Humboldt. The language units can be treated as the specific treasury that preserves national identity of a certain language community. O. Potebnya expressed his own original vision of idioms, which he considered as a small version of the “whole world”. Having symbolic correlation with cultural signs, experience and behaviour stereotypes idioms represent universal ideas common to different language systems. Nevertheless there are also peculiar images belonging only to certain language groups and its interpretation demands deeper language and cultural code analysis. This research mainly focuses on studying idioms expressing the traits of character and behavioral habits through the animistic phraseological structures while bilingual teaching of English and Ukrainian in particular. The diversity of idioms with animistic components in their structure is rather various and can be hardly illustrated in one research. That is why the main attention of this study is paid to idioms with animistic components representing the following images: domestic animals and insects. The first group includes set expressions, which are distinguished according to the presence in their structure such words as a dog, a sheep, a hen. Illustration analysis shows that these animistic components are represented in both languages. Furthermore some idiomatic constructions demonstrate similar meaning and structure. The second group comprises comparatively smaller number of samples. It contains idioms defying rather emotional state of a person and his / her behavior rather personal character trait itself. The analysis of English and Ukrainian illustrations demonstrates the low correspondence of samples in both languages. Despite the fact that the world vision in both nations contains similar ideas about emotional state of a person and his / her behavior, its linguistic representation is totally different. The results of practical analysis vividly confirm the idea of national and cultural marking revealed in set expressions for both languages. It also shows the necessity of profound investigating national and cultural symbols while studying language phraseological and paremian heritage. These observations might help in highlighting more complicated world perception characteristics in English and Ukrainian.

The presence of aeroallergens in food products: a potential risk for the patient with allergic rhinitis

Abstract Clinical entities of food allergy in allergic rhinitis patients due to IgE-sensitization to cross-reactive aeroallergen and food allergen components are well described, but less data are available regarding allergic reactions to foods containing aeroallergens, either due to food contamination, such as oral mite anaphylaxis, or due to their natural presence in the edible products, such as pollen grains in honey and bee products. There are some potential risks for allergic rhinitis subjects due to ingestion of food products containing domestic mite, insect, fungal and pollen allergens. The knowledge of these risks is useful for the allergists and ENT specialists, especially in the context of climate changes with warmer periods facilitating mite growth in flours, and of increase use of phytotherapy and apitherapy products containing pollen grains.

Core-Shell Nanoparticles/Two-Dimensional (2D) Hexagonal Boron Nitride Nanosheets with Molecularly Imprinted Polymer for Electrochemical Sensing of Cypermethrin

Cypermethrin ([RS]-alpha-cyano-3-phenoxybenzyl [1RS, 3RS; 1RS, 3SR]-3-[2,2-dichlorovinyl]-2,2-dimethylcyclopropanecarboxylate) is a crucial pyrethroid and it is generally used as poison against crop pests, domestic insects and ectoparasites in farmed fish. A new molecular imprinted sensor approach based on core-shell type nanoparticles (Fe@AuNPs) incorporated two-dimensional (2D) hexagonal boron nitride (2D-hBN) nanosheets was presented for cypermethrin (CYP) detection in wastewater samples. All nanomaterials’ formation and properties were highlighted with scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) method, energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). CYP imprinted voltammetric sensor was improved in presence of 80.0 mM phenol containing 20.0 mM CYP by CV. 1.0 × 10−13 - 1.0 × 10−8 M and 3.0 × 10−14 M were founded as the linearity range and the detection limit (LOD). Finally, CYP imprinted glassy carbon electrode (GCE) was used for wastewater sample analysis in presence of the other competitor agents such as deltamethrin (DEL), tetrametrin (TET) and permethrin (PER). In addition, the prepared sensor was investigated in terms of stability and repeatability.

갈색거저리 유충 단백가수분해물의 제조 및 항산화 활성

The present study was carried out to evaluate the applicability of Tenebrio molitor larvae (mealworm) as a health functional food material in order to contribute to the development of the domestic insect industry and health functional food industry. Protein hydrolysates were prepared from mealworm powder by enzymatic hydrolysis using five different proteases (alcalase, bromelain, flavourzyme, neutrase, and papain), and the hydrolysates were then tested for their antioxidant activities. Based on available amino group contents and sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analyses, mealworms treated with alcalase (4,781.39 μg/mL), flavourzyme (5,429.35 μg/mL), or neutrase (3,155.55 μg/mL) for 24 h showed high degree of hydrolysis (HD) value, whereas HD values of bromelain (1,800 μg/mL) and papain-treated (1,782.61 μg/mL) mealworms were much lower. Protein hydrolysates showing high HD values were further separated into > 3 kDa and ≤ 3 kDa fractions by a centrifugal filter system and then lyophilized, and the production yields of the low molecular weight protein hydrolysates (≤ 3 kDa) by alcalase, flavourzyme, and neutrase were 42.05%, 26.27%, and 30.01%, respectively. According to the RC 50 values of the protein hydrolysates (≤ 3 kDa) obtained from three different antioxidant analyses, all three hydrolysates showed similar antioxidant activities. Thus, alcalase hydrolysates showing the highest production yield of low molecular weight protein hydrolysates were further tested for their inhibitory effects on peroxidation of linoleic acid by measuring thiobarbituric acid values, and the results show that peroxidation of untreated linoleic acid increased dramatically during 6 days of incubation. However, pretreatment with the hydrolysates (100∼800 μg/mL) significantly inhibited linoleic acid peroxidation in a dose-dependent manner over 6 days.

Pollinators and Global Food Security: the Need for Holistic Global Stewardship

Over the past decades, both wild and domesticated insect pollinators are in dramatic decline, which puts at stake the existence of species, ecosystem resilience and global food security. Globally, 87 of major food crops depend on animal pollination. Together these account for 35 % of the world food production volume. Pollinator mediated crops are indispensable for essential micronutrients in the human diet. Many ornamental plants as well as crops for fibre, fodder, biofuels, timber and phytopharmaceuticals also depend on insect pollinators. This article aims to map the current situation of pollinators worldwide, with a focus on the critical role of pollinators in the human food chain and ecosystem sustainability, their intrinsic and extrinsic value, as well as the causes of their declines and the interventions needed to conserve them, in order to develop an argument for the importance of conserving and restoring pollinator populations and diversity. The present pollinator crisis threatens global and local food security, can worsen the problems of hidden hunger, erodes ecosystem resilience, and can destabilise ecosystems that form our life support system. An integrated approach that simultaneously addresses the key drivers is needed. This includes creation and restoration of floral and nesting resources, a global phase out of prophylactic use of neonicotinoids and fipronil, improvement of test protocols in authorisation of agrochemicals, and restoration and maintenance of independence in regulatory science. The authors argue that an international treaty for global pollinator stewardship and pollinator ecosystem restoration should be initiated in order to systemically counteract the current crisis.

A DNA barcode library of the beetle reference collection (Insecta: Coleoptera) in the National Science Museum, Korea

Coleoptera is a group of insects that are most diverse among insect resources. Although used as indicator species and applied in developing new drugs, it is difficult to identify them quickly. Since the development of a method using mitochondrial DNA information for identification, studies have been conducted in Korea to swiftly and accurately identify species. The National Science Museum of Korea (NSMK) has been collecting and morphologically identifying domestic reference insects since 2013, and building a database of DNA barcodes with digital images. The NSMK completed construction of a database of digital images and DNA barcodes of 60 beetle species in the Korean National Research Information System. A total of 179 specimens and 60 species were used for the analysis, and the averages of intraspecific and interspecific variations were 0.70±0.45% and 26.34±6.01%, respectively, with variation rates ranging from 0% to 1.45% and 9.83% to 56.23%, respectively.

Comparative Study of Biological Characters of Silkworm Eggs

The silkworm Bombyx mori L. is a domesticated insect considered as a reference in several domains (Mauchamp et al., 2008). The theoretical and practical importance of the silkworms are shown in many studies (Nagaraju et al., 1996; Kipriotis et al., 2000; Sudhakara et al., 2003; Vassileva et al., 2004; Petkov et al., 1998; Matei et al., 2002; 2005). This study was conducted to compare four monovoltine breeds of Romanian silkworm, hatching in specific conditions, in different years (2001 and 2008), to see if there is a major difference between the biological characters of eggs belonging to those breeds in time. For both 2001 and 2008 years, four breeds AC29, AC, B1 and AB of Bombyx mori (eggs) were obtained from SC SERICAROM (Bucharest, Romania) and the same microclimate conditions were assuring. In total, per data set of each year were 16 variants because each of the breed was hatch in four variants, for more complete results of analyzed samples. The evaluation was made on the base of indices used for classified biological characters of silkworm eggs, comparative data shows that, between the same breeds hatching in different years, there is no significant difference. According to biological characteristics, the study allowed us to make a classification of the analyzed breeds. In the present research, we demonstrated that biological characters of silkworm eggs were well preserved and there are no significant variations between both set of data taken in study. Â

The paratransgenic potential of Lactobacillus kunkeei in the honey bee Apis mellifera.

The honey bee (Apis mellifera) is a domestic insect of high value to human societies, as a crop pollinator in agriculture and a model animal in scientific research. The honey bee, however, has experienced massive mortality worldwide due to the phenomenon Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), resulting in alarming prospects for crop failure in Europe and the USA. The reasons for CCD are complex and much debated, but several honey bee pathogens are believed to be involved. Paratransgenesis is a Trojan horse strategy, where endogenous microorganisms are used to express effector molecules that antagonise pathogen development. For use in honey bees, paratransgenesis must rely on a set of criteria that the candidate paratransgenic microorganism must fulfil in order to obtain a successful outcome: (1) the candidate must be genetically modifiable to express effector molecules; (2) the modified organism should have no adverse effects on honey bee health upon reintroduction; and (3) it must survive together with other non-pathogenic bee-associated microorganisms. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are common gut bacteria in vertebrates and invertebrates, and some have naturally beneficial properties in their host. In the present work we aimed to find a potential paratransgenic candidate within this bacterial group for use in honey bees. Among isolated LAB associated with bee gut microbiota, we found the fructophilic Lactobacillus kunkeei to be the most predominant species during foraging seasons. Four genetically different strains of L. kunkeei were selected for further assessment. We demonstrated (1) that L. kunkeei is transformable; (2) that the transformed cells had no obvious adverse effect on honey bee survival; and (3) that transformed cells survived well in the gut environment of bees upon reintroduction. Our study demonstrates that L. kunkeei fulfils the three criteria for paratransgenesis and can be a suitable candidate for further research on this strategy in honey bees.