ABSTRACT
The white potato worm Premnotrypes vorax (Hustache) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is one of the most destructive insect pests of potato crops in South America. Like many coleopteran insects, P. vorax shows low susceptibility to Cry insecticidal proteins produced by the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). However, the presence of Cry toxin receptors in the midgut of this this insect has never been studied. The main Cry-binding proteins described in other insect species are cadherin (CAD), aminopeptidase N (APN), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters. In this study, we analyzed and validated a de novo assembled transcriptome of Illumina sequencing data to identify and to characterize homologs of Cry toxin receptors. We identified the protein sequences in P. vorax that show high identity with their orthologous sequences of the Cry toxin binding proteins in other coleopteran larvae such as APN, ALP, CAD and ABC transporter. This study provides preliminary identification of putative receptor genes of Cry proteins that would be useful for future studies involving biocontrol of this important potato crop pest.
Subject(s)
Coleoptera , Weevils , Animals , Weevils/genetics , Transcriptome , Insect Proteins/genetics , ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters , Alkaline Phosphatase , CD13 Antigens/genetics , Cadherins , Coloring AgentsABSTRACT
RESUMEN Las toxinas Cry de Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) han sido reconocidas por su acción biocontroladora contra insectos plaga. Recientemente se ha descrito que algunas cepas de Bt codifican proteínas que no presentan actividad insecticida, pero al ser enfrentadas a líneas celulares de cáncer de diferentes tipos han demostrado actividad citotóxica. Estas proteínas han sido denominadas parasporinas (PS) y surgen como una potencial alternativa para el tratamiento del cáncer debido a que presentan citotoxicidad hacia diferentes líneas celulares cancerígenas y baja o nula citotoxicidad hacia células normales.
ABSTRACT Cry toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) have been recognized for their biocontrol action against insect pests. Recently it has been described some strains of Bt produce proteins without insecticidal activity, but when cancer cell lines of different types are exposed to these proteins they have demonstrated cytotoxic activity. These proteins have been called parasporins (PS) and are a potential alternative for the treatment of cancer because they have high cytotoxicity in different cancer cell lines, and null or low toxic activity in normal cells.
