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- Title
Uridine Diphosphate Glycosyltransferases (UGTs) Involved in the Carotenoid-Based Body Color Difference between Tetranychus cinnabarinus (Red) and Tetranychus urticae (Green).
- Authors
Xu, Zhifeng; Lin, Ting; Wang, Tongyang; Hu, Yuan; Shen, Guangmao; Feng, Kaiyang; Zhang, Ping; He, Lin
- Abstract
Simple Summary: There has been ongoing scholarly discourse regarding the potential identity of the carmine spider mite and two-spotted spider mite. However, the most prominent distinction between the two mite species is their body coloration, with the former exhibiting red and the latter displaying green. Our investigation has revealed that the dissimilarity in body pigmentation between the two mite species primarily stems from variations in carotenoid content and composition within their anatomical structures. Furthermore, it is plausible that this dissimilarity may be attributed to the differential expression of genes associated with pigmentation. Following the inhibition of various pigment-related genes, the mites exhibited varying alterations in carotenoid content. Notably, the inhibition of Uridine diphosphate glycosyltransferases induced a transition in body color from green to yellow in the two-spotted spider mite. While the current investigation has not completely elucidated the mechanism underlying the pigmentation disparities between the two mite species, we have conducted an analysis of carotenoid content and the expression of their anabolic genes, thereby establishing a basis for a comprehensive examination of the pigmentation pathway. It has long been disputed whether Tetranychus cinnabarinus and Tetranychus urticae belong to the same genus, with T. cinnabarinus regarded as a red form of T. urticae. However, it is unclear why T. urticae and T. cinnabarinus have different body colors. Since carotenoids are responsible for the color of many organisms, the carotenoid profiles of T. cinnabarinus and T. urticae were compared by HPLC. There was no difference in carotenoid type, but T. cinnabarinus contained significantly more neoxanthin, astaxanthin, α-carotene, β-carotene, and γ-carotene, which may contribute to the deep red color. The transcriptome sequencing of both species identified 4079 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), of which 12 were related to carotenoid metabolism. RNA interference (RNAi) experiments demonstrated that silencing seven of these DEGs resulted in the different accumulation of carotenoid compounds in T. cinnabarinus and T. urticae. In addition, the body of T. urticae turned yellow after two days of feeding with UGT double-stranded RNAs and β-UGT small interfering RNAs. In conclusion, differences in the carotenoid profiles of T. urticae and T. cinnabarinus may be responsible for the different body colors.
- Subjects
URIDINE diphosphate; TWO-spotted spider mite; CAROTENOIDS; ASTAXANTHIN; SMALL interfering RNA; GLYCOSYLTRANSFERASES; RNA interference
- Publication
Insects (2075-4450), 2023, Vol 14, Issue 10, p823
- ISSN
2075-4450
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3390/insects14100823