Effects of two hemolymph proteins on humoral defense reactions in the wax moth, Galleria mellonella.
Two hemolymph proteins were isolated from the wax moth, Galleria mellonella, larvae by a two-step procedure consisting of acid extraction and reversed phase (RP)-HPLC. One was an apolipophorin III (apoLp-III) previously characterized as a lipopolysaccharide (LPS) binding protein in the hemolymph of G. mellonella. The other was confirmed to be a new protein with a molecular mass of 23,768.69 Da, referred to as Gm protein-24. The full-length cDNA of Gm protein-24 was cloned from the fat body. The cDNA structure showed that it is a 219-residues protein derived from the precursor of 236 amino acids. The effects of apoLp-III and Gm protein-24 have been tested on the insect humoral immunity. ApoLp-III enhanced the activity of antibacterial peptide such as cecropin but Gm protein-24 had no effect on cecropin activity. On the other hand, Gm protein-24 and apoLp-III were both involved in the activation of prophenoloxidase (PPO) cascade, which has been regarded as a critical immune reaction in insect hemolymph. Of note, the Gm protein-24 was a significantly stronger activator of PPO cascade than apoLp-III.
Department of Life Science, Hoseo University, Sechul-Ri, Baebang-Myun, Asan City, Chungnam-Do 336-795, South Korea.
Shin Yong
SY
Park
Chong Han
CH
Kim
Woo Hyuk
WH
Jeong
Joon Ha
JH
Lee
Sook Jae
SJ
Seo
Yeon Soo
YS
Han
In Hee
IH
Lee
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides / Q000378:metabolism; D001053:Apolipoproteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D001483:Base Sequence; D004156:Catechol Oxidase / Q000378:metabolism; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D004792:Enzyme Precursors / Q000378:metabolism; D004926:Escherichia coli; D005216:Fat Body / Q000737:chemistry; D006458:Hemolymph / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D007814:Larva / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009036:Moths / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology; D016415:Sequence Alignment
D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides; D001053:Apolipoproteins; D004792:Enzyme Precursors; D019476:Insect Proteins; C042470:apolipophorin III; C031161:cecropin A; C038451:pro-phenoloxidase; D004156:Catechol Oxidase