How and why does Diatraea saccharalis 'smell' the odor of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released by fungal-infected plants?

• Grant number: 24/10468-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: August 01, 2024
• End date: July 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Interdisciplinary Subjects
• Principal Investigator: Márcio de Castro Silva Filho
• Grantee: Maressa de Oliveira Henrique
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 22/09473-8 - Sugarcane multitrophic interactions: integrating microbiota composition and function with herbivorous insects, AP.BIOEN.TEM

Abstract

The project aim is to investigate the genetic basis of D. saccharalis response to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) produced by Fusarium verticillioides. Multiple approaches will be employed, including evaluation of gene expression profiles; analysis of changes in VOC expression produced by these fungi infected with the mycovirus Fusarium verticillioides partitivirus 1 (FvPV1) using gas chromatography (GC); and investigation into horizontal gene transfer between the fungus and the insect using bioinformatics tools. The researcher will conduct gene expression studies on adult female insects and larvae, analyze the secretome of fungi infected with FvPV1 mycovirus, and perform in silico evaluation of the insect and fungus genomes available in databases. Initially, the researcher will expose larvae and adult insects to sugarcane plants infected with fungi. Subsequently, transcript sequencing and gene expression analysis will be conducted. To explore the phenotypic effect of the mycovirus on the fungus, infected and non-infected isogenic strains will be initially obtained. Gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (MS) will then be performed to assess the volatile profile. Horizontal gene transfer between kingdoms will be conducted through phylogenetic analysis and BLAST against available genome databases. The final activity will be to identify which insect genes are affected by VOCs, how the mycovirus alters fungal phenotype, consequently affecting the insect-fungus interaction, and finally, whether horizontal transfer contributed to the symbiosis between D. saccharalis and F. verticillioides. The results of this study will be disseminated through scientific articles and presentations at conferences.