title: Regulation of Isoprenoid Pheromone Biosynthesis in Bumblebee Males.
abstract: Males of the closely related species Bombus terrestris and Bombus lucorum attract conspecific females by completely different marking pheromones. MP of B. terrestris and B. lucorum pheromones contain mainly isoprenoid (ISP) compounds and fatty acid derivatives, respectively. Here, we studied the regulation of ISP biosynthesis in both bumblebees. RNA-seq and qRT-PCR analyses indicated that acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase (AACT), 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGR), and farnesyl diphosphate synthase (FPPS) transcripts are abundant in the B. terrestris labial gland. Maximal abundance of these transcripts correlated well with AACT enzymatic activity detected in the LG extracts. In contrast, transcript abundances of AACT, HMGR, and FPPS in B. lucorum were low, and AACT activity was not detected in LGs. These results suggest that transcriptional regulation plays a key role in the control of ISP biosynthetic gene expression and ISP pheromone biosynthesis in bumblebee males.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, v.v.i. Flemingovo n. 2, 166 10, Prague 6, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Darina
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Prchalová
authors.affiliation: Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, v.v.i. Flemingovo n. 2, 166 10, Prague 6, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Aleš
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Buček
authors.affiliation: Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, v.v.i. Flemingovo n. 2, 166 10, Prague 6, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Jana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Brabcová
authors.affiliation: Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, v.v.i. Flemingovo n. 2, 166 10, Prague 6, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Petr
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3512-5802
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Žáček
authors.affiliation: Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, v.v.i. Flemingovo n. 2, 166 10, Prague 6, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Jiří
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kindl
authors.affiliation: Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, v.v.i. Flemingovo n. 2, 166 10, Prague 6, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Irena
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5723-6143
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Valterová
authors.affiliation: Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, v.v.i. Flemingovo n. 2, 166 10, Prague 6, Czech Republic. iva.pichova@uochb.cas.cz.
authors.forename: Iva
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2178-9819
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pichová
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001516:Bees / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020451:Contig Mapping; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D010675:Pheromones / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D012313:RNA / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D017423:Sequence Analysis, RNA; D013729:Terpenes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D019476:Insect Proteins; D010675:Pheromones; D013729:Terpenes; D012313:RNA
keywords: Bombus spp.; biosynthesis; gene expression; isoprenoids; pheromones; transcriptional regulation