Identification of differentially expressed genes in female Drosophila antonietae and Drosophila meridionalis in response to host cactus odor

Autor(es)

Borgonove, Camila M. ^[1] ; Cavallari, Carla B. ^[1] ; Santos, Mateus H. ^[1] ; Rossetti, Rafaela ^[1] ; Hartfelder, Klaus ^[2] ; Manfrin, Maura H. ^{[1, 3]}

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Fac Filosofia Ciencias & Letras Ribeirao Preto, Dept Biol, BR-14049900 Ribeirao Preto - Brazil

^[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Fac Med Ribeirao Preto, Dept Biol Celular & Mol Bioagentes Patogen, BR-14049900 Ribeirao Preto - Brazil

^[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Fac Med Ribeirao Preto, Dept Genet, BR-14049900 Ribeirao Preto - Brazil

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: BMC Evolutionary Biology; v. 14, SEP 2 2014.
• Citações Web of Science: 3

Resumo

Background: Studies of insect-plant interactions have provided critical insights into the ecology and evolution of adaptive processes within and among species. Cactophilic Drosophila species have received much attention because larval development occurs in the necrotic tissues of cacti, and both larvae and adults feed on these tissues. Such Drosophila-cactus interactions include effects of the host plant on the physiology and behavior of the flies, especially so their nutritional status, mating condition and reproduction. The aim of this work was to compare the transcriptional responses of two species, Drosophila antonietae and Drosophila meridionalis, and identify genes potentially related to responses to odors released by their host cactus, Cereus hildmannianus. The two fly species are sympatric in most of their populations and use this same host cactus in nature. Results: We obtained 47 unique sequences (USs) for D. antonietae in a suppression subtractive hybridization screen, 30 of these USs had matches with genes predicted for other Drosophila species. For D. meridionalis we obtained 81 USs, 46 of which were orthologous with genes from other Drosophila species. Functional information (Gene Ontology) revealed that these differentially expressed genes are related to metabolic processes, detoxification mechanisms, signaling, response to stimuli, and reproduction. The expression of 13 genes from D. meridionalis and 12 from D. antonietae were further analyzed by quantitative real time-PCR, showing that four genes were significantly overexpressed in D. antonietae and six in D. meridionalis. Conclusions: Our results revealed the differential expression of genes related to responses to odor stimuli by a cactus, in two associated fly species. Although the majority of activated genes were similar between the two species, we also observed that certain metabolic pathways were specifically activated, especially those related to signaling pathways and detoxification mechanisms. The activation of these genes may reflect different metabolic pathways used by these flies in their interaction with this host cactus. Our findings provide insight into how the use of C. hildmannianus may have arisen independently in the two fly species, through genetic differentiation in metabolic pathways to effectively explore this cactus as a host. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 10/10920-1 - Identificação de genes diferencialmente expressos envolvidos no mecanismo sensorial de espécies generalistas e especialistas de Drosophila cactófilas (grupo repleta)
• Beneficiário: Carla Fernanda Barsalobres Cavallari
• Linha de fomento: Bolsas no Brasil - Pós-Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 11/51652-2 - A diversificacao de populacoes e especies cactofilas de drosophila em uma pespectiva historica e ecologica.
• Beneficiário: Maura Helena Manfrin
• Linha de fomento: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular