title: A gustatory receptor tuned to D-fructose in antennal sensilla chaetica of Helicoverpa armigera.
abstract: Insect gustatory systems play important roles in food selection and feeding behaviors. In spite of the enormous progress in understanding gustation in Drosophila, for other insects one of the key elements in gustatory signaling, the gustatory receptor (GR), is still elusive. In this study, we report that fructose elicits behavioral and physiological responses in Helicoverpa armigera (Harm) to fructose and identify the gustatory receptor for this sugar. Using the proboscis extension reflex (PER) assays we found that females respond to fructose following stimulation of the distal part of the antenna, where we have identified contact chemosensilla tuned to fructose in tip recording experiments. We isolated three full-length cDNAs encoding candidate HarmGRs based on comparison with orthologous GR sequences in Heliothis virescens and functionally characterized the responses of HarmGR4 to 15 chemicals when this receptor was expressed in Xenopus oocytes with two-electrode voltage-clamp recording. Among the tastants tested, the oocytes dose-dependently responded only to D-fructose (EC50 = 0.045 M). By combining behavioral, electrophysiological and molecular approaches, these results provide basic knowledge for further research on the molecular mechanisms of gustatory reception.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Shandong Peanut Research Institute, Qingdao, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Jing
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Chao
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ning
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; School of Life Sciences, Anhui University, Hefei, China.
authors.forename: Yan-Yan
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Ling-Qiao
authors.initials: LQ
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Shandong Peanut Research Institute, Qingdao, China.
authors.forename: Ming-Jing
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Qu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. Electronic address: czwang@ioz.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Chen-Zhu
authors.initials: CZ
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D057506:Arthropod Antennae / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005632:Fructose / Q000378:metabolism*; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D009036:Moths / Q000378:metabolism*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D058618:Sensilla / Q000378:metabolism*; D014981:Xenopus
chemical_list: D019476:Insect Proteins; D005632:Fructose
keywords: Gustatory receptor; Helicoverpa armigera; Proboscis extension reflex; Xenopus laevis oocyte; d-fructose