Zhang, Z.; Jin, F.; Huang, J.; Mandal, S.D.; Zeng, L.; Zafar, J.; Xu, X. MicroRNA Targets PAP1 to Mediate Melanization in Plutella xylostella (Linnaeus) Infected by Metarhizium anisopliae. Int. J. Mol. Sci.2024, 25, 1140.
Zhang, Z.; Jin, F.; Huang, J.; Mandal, S.D.; Zeng, L.; Zafar, J.; Xu, X. MicroRNA Targets PAP1 to Mediate Melanization in Plutella xylostella (Linnaeus) Infected by Metarhizium anisopliae. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25, 1140.
Zhang, Z.; Jin, F.; Huang, J.; Mandal, S.D.; Zeng, L.; Zafar, J.; Xu, X. MicroRNA Targets PAP1 to Mediate Melanization in Plutella xylostella (Linnaeus) Infected by Metarhizium anisopliae. Int. J. Mol. Sci.2024, 25, 1140.
Zhang, Z.; Jin, F.; Huang, J.; Mandal, S.D.; Zeng, L.; Zafar, J.; Xu, X. MicroRNA Targets PAP1 to Mediate Melanization in Plutella xylostella (Linnaeus) Infected by Metarhizium anisopliae. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25, 1140.
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play a pivotal role in important biological processes by regulating posttranscriptional gene expression and exhibit differential expression patterns during development, immune responses, and stress challenges. The diamondback moth causes significant economic damage to crops worldwide. Despite substantial advancements in understanding the molecular biology of this pest, our knowledge regarding the role of miRNAs in regulating key immunity-related genes remains limited. In this study, we leveraged whole transcriptome resequencing data from P. xylostella infected with Metarhizium anisopliae to identify specific miRNAs targeting the prophenoloxidase-activating protease1 (PAP1) gene through bioinformatic analysis. Seven miRNAs (pxy-miR-375-5p, pxy-miR-4448-3p, pxy-miR-279a-3p, pxy-miR-3286-3p, pxy-miR-965-5p, pxy-miR-8799-3p and pxy-miR-14b-5p) were identified and validated. Luciferase reporter assays confirmed that pxy-miR-279a-3p binds to the open reading frame (ORF) and pxy-miR-965-5p to the 3’ untranslated region (3’ UTR) of PAP1. Our experiments demonstrated that injecting a pxy-miR-965-5p mimic significantly reduced PAP1 expression in P. xylostella larvae, suppressing PO activity and increasing larval mortality rate. Conversely, the injection of inhibitors obtained opposite results. Furthermore, we identified four LncRNAs (MSTRG.32910.1, MSTRG.7100.1, MSTRG.6802.1, and MSTRG.22113.1) that potentially interact with pxy-miR-965-5p. Interference assays using antisense oligonucleotides (ASO) revealed that silencing MSTRG.7100.1 and MSTRG.22113.1 increased the expression of pxy-miR-965-5p. These findings shed light on the potential role of pxy-miR-965-5p in the immune response of P. xylostella to M. anisopliae infection and provide a theoretical basis for biological control strategies targeting the immune system of this pest.
Keywords
Diamondback moth; noncoding RNAs; melanization; pest management.
Subject
Biology and Life Sciences, Insect Science
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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