Clarification of geographical polymorphism in storage pests by focusing on mitochondrial DNA hotspots.

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K06334
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 41040:Agricultural environmental engineering and agricultural information engineering-related
• Research Institution: National Agriculture and Food Research Organization
• Principal Investigator: Furui Satoshi 国立研究開発法人農業・食品産業技術総合研究機構, 食品研究部門, 上級研究員 (70391191)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: ミトコンドリアDNA / 地理的多型性解明 / 食品害虫 / ノシメマダラメイガ / 異物混入

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Total DNA was prepared from adult Indian meal moths collected from 34 sites to determine the DNA polymorphism of these moths in Japan. Sequence information of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene and the 16S ribosomal RNA gene were compared, and characteristic mutations were found in each target.
To develop an efficient isolation method for mitochondrial DNA, total DNA was separated by agarose gel electrophoresis. Using molecular weight markers as indicators, parts of the gel containing mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) were collected and purified using a commercially available kit. This method can be performed routinely according to basic molecular biology experiments, and the mtDNA obtained could be prepared with good yield and high purity.

Free Research Field

分子生物学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

代表的な食品害虫として知られるノシメマダラメイガは飛翔性が低く、移動が抑制された状態で住み続けることで、ミトコンドリアDNA(mtDNA)に地域に特有な遺伝的な変異が生じている。この独自性を活用すれば、ごく微量の昆虫片から生息地域判定が可能となる。
本研究では、国内34箇所におけるノシメマダラメイガを採集後、DNA配列を比較し、生息地域によるDNAの地域差を明らかにした。また、mtDNAのシンプルかつ効率的な調製法を開発した。本研究成果は、他の昆虫やmtDNA全域の配列データの蓄積と比較を進めることで、食品に混入した昆虫から混入地点を特定する、迅速で精確性の高い分析手法の開発に応用できる。