Elucidation of the molecular mechanisms that underlie male-killing induced by Wolbachia.

2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K14477
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 39050:Insect science-related
• Research Institution: National Agriculture and Food Research Organization
• Principal Investigator: Sugimoto Takafumi 国立研究開発法人農業・食品産業技術総合研究機構, 生物機能利用研究部門, 契約研究員 (20726707)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2020-03-31
• Keywords: ボルバキア / アズキノメイガ / 生殖操作 / オス殺し / 性決定 / 培養細胞

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Endosymbiotic bacteria of the genus Wolbachia infecting the adzuki bean borer moth Ostrinia scapulalis causes male killing due to sexual-reversal during embryo to larvae. We successfully established O. scapulalis cell lines and reproduced the sexual-reversal via Wolbachia-infection in cultured cell. Next, we analyzed the gene expression profiles comparison between Wolbachia-infected male cell lines and uninfected lines by RNA-seq. As the result, 3 genes were up-regulated through Wolbachia induced sexual-reversal and 3 genes were down-regulated. One up-regulated and down-regulated gene had highly homology with sex determining genes and other genes were placed closely to sex-determining genes.

Free Research Field

応用昆虫学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究の意義は、昆虫の性を自在に操り、その“生”をも操作する共生細菌の生殖操作機構を明らかにすることを通じて、生殖操作が共生細菌や宿主個体群に与える生態学的な意義の推定を可能にし、その機構に関与する遺伝子の構造や配列から、進化の歴史を明らかにすることにある。また、近年において農業におけるSDGsの達成を視野に、環境フレンドリーな生物資材として、微生物資材の研究開発を求める声が高まっており、害虫駆除や効率的な益虫生産への貢献が期待されるボルバキアの、その生殖操作機構の詳細な理解に対する期待が高まっている。