title: Characterisations of odorant-binding proteins in the tsetse fly Glossina morsitans morsitans.
abstract: Odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) play an important role in insect olfaction by mediating interactions between odorants and odorant receptors. We report for the first time 20 OBP genes in the tsetse fly Glossina morsitans morsitans. qRT-PCR revealed that 8 of these genes were highly transcribed in the antennae. The transcription of these genes in the antennae was significantly lower in males than in females and there was a clear correlation between OBP gene transcription and feeding status. Starvation over 72 h post-blood meal (PBM) did not significantly affect the transcription. However, the transcription in the antennae of 10-week-old flies was much higher than in 3-day-old flies at 48 h PBM and decreased sharply after 72 h starvation, suggesting that the OBP gene expression is affected by the insect's nutritional status. Sequence comparisons with OBPs of other Dipterans identified several homologs to sex pheromone-binding proteins and OBPs of Drosophila melanogaster.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Chemistry, Harpenden, UK.
authors.forename: Renhu
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Stella
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lehane
authors.forename: Xiaoli
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lehane
authors.forename: Christiane
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hertz-Fowler
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Berriman
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Pickett
authors.forename: Linda M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Field
authors.forename: Jing-Jiang
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D005260:Female; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D015723:Gene Library; D008297:Male; D018035:Receptors, Odorant / Q000235:genetics*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D020539:Sequence Analysis, Protein; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D014370:Tsetse Flies / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D018035:Receptors, Odorant; C045648:odorant-binding protein