Mosquito-specific microRNA-1890 targets the juvenile hormone-regulated serine protease JHA15 in the female mosquito gut.
Females of the hematophagous mosquito species require a vertebrate blood meal to supply amino acids and other nutrients necessary for egg development, serving as the driving force for the spread of many vector-borne diseases in humans. Blood digestion utilizes both early and late phase serine proteases (SPs) that are differentially regulated at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional level. To uncover the regulatory complexity of SPs in the female mosquito midgut, we investigated involvement of miRNAs in regulating the juvenile hormone (JH)-controlled chymotrypsin-like SP, JHA15. We identified regulatory regions complementary to the mosquito-specific miRNA, miR-1890, within the 3' UTR of JHA15 mRNA. The level of the JHA15 transcript is highest post eclosion and drastically declines post blood meal (PBM), exhibiting an opposite trend to miR-1890 that peaks at 24 h PBM. Depletion of miR-1890 results in defects in blood digestion, ovary development and egg deposition. JHA15 mRNA and protein levels are elevated in female mosquitoes with miR-1890 inhibition. JHA15 RNA interference in the miR-1890 depletion background alleviates miR-1890 depletion phenotypes. The miR-1890 gene is activated by the 20-hydroxyecdysone pathway that involves the ecdysone receptor and the early genes, E74B and Broad Z2. Our study suggests that miR-1890 controls JHA15 mRNA stability in a stage- and tissue- specific manner.
a Department of Entomology ; University of California, Riverside ; Riverside , CA USA.|b Graduate Program in Genetics; Genomics and Bioinformatics; University of California Riverside , Riverside , CA USA.
Keira J
KJ
Lucas
a Department of Entomology ; University of California, Riverside ; Riverside , CA USA.|c Institute for Integrative Genome Biology; University of California Riverside , Riverside , CA USA.
Bo
B
Zhao
a Department of Entomology ; University of California, Riverside ; Riverside , CA USA.|c Institute for Integrative Genome Biology; University of California Riverside , Riverside , CA USA.
Sourav
S
Roy
a Department of Entomology ; University of California, Riverside ; Riverside , CA USA.
Amanda L
AL
Gervaise
a Department of Entomology ; University of California, Riverside ; Riverside , CA USA.|c Institute for Integrative Genome Biology; University of California Riverside , Riverside , CA USA.
Alexander S
AS
Raikhel
D020413:3' Untranslated Regions / Q000235:genetics; D000330:Aedes / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics*; D000818:Animals; D001665:Binding Sites; D004063:Digestion; D004064:Digestive System / Q000201:enzymology*; D004440:Ecdysone / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D055785:Gene Knockdown Techniques; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D007605:Juvenile Hormones / Q000378:metabolism*; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000378:metabolism*; D010641:Phenotype; D034622:RNA Interference; D057057:Serine Proteases / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000235:genetics; D013045:Species Specificity
D020413:3' Untranslated Regions; D019476:Insect Proteins; D007605:Juvenile Hormones; D035683:MicroRNAs; D004440:Ecdysone; D057057:Serine Proteases
Mosquito; digestive protease; ecdysone; juvenile hormone; microRNA