Angiotensin-converting enzymes modulate aphid-plant interactions.
Angiotensin-converting enzymes (ACEs) are key components of the renin-angiotensin system in mammals. However, the function of ACE homologs in insect saliva is unclear. Aphids presumably deliver effector proteins via saliva into plant cells to maintain a compatible insect-plant interaction. In this study, we showed that ACE modulates aphid-plant interactions by affecting feeding behavior and survival of aphids on host plants. Three ACE genes were identified from the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum genome. ACE1 and ACE2 were highly expressed in the salivary glands and are predicted to function as secretory proteins. The ACE2 transcript level decreased in aphids fed on artificial diet compared with aphids fed on Vicia faba. The knockdown of the expression of each ACE by RNAi failed to affect aphid survival. When ACE1 and ACE2 were simultaneously knocked down, aphid feeding was enhanced. Aphids required less time to find the phloem sap and showed longer passive ingestion. However, the simultaneous knockdown of ACE1 and ACE2 resulted in a higher mortality rate than the control group when aphids were fed on plants. These results indicated that ACE1 and ACE2 function together to modulate A. pisum feeding and survival on plants.
1] State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China [2] College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China.
Wei
W
Wang
State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
Lan
L
Luo
State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
Hong
H
Lu
College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China.
Shaoliang
S
Chen
State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
Le
L
Kang
State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
Feng
F
Cui
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000821:Animal Feed; D000818:Animals; D001042:Aphids / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D015870:Gene Expression; D055785:Gene Knockdown Techniques; D060434:Herbivory / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D010944:Plants; D012098:Reproduction / Q000235:genetics; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A