title: Identification and preliminary characterization of chemosensory perception-associated proteins in the melon fly Bactrocera cucurbitae using RNA-seq.
abstract: An investigation into proteins involved in chemosensory perception in the melon fly, Bactrocera cucurbitae (Diptera: Tephritidae) is described here using a newly generated transcriptome dataset. The melon fly is a major agricultural pest, widely distributed in the Asia-Pacific region and some parts of Africa. For this study, a transcriptome dataset was generated using RNA extracted from 4-day-old adult specimens of the melon fly. The dataset was assembled and annotated via Gene Ontology (GO) analysis. Based on this and similarity searches to data from other species, a number of protein sequences putatively involved in chemosensory reception were identified and characterized in the melon fly. This included the highly conserved "Orco" along with a number of other less conserved odorant binding protein sequences. In addition, several sequences representing putative ionotropic and gustatory receptors were also identified. This study provides a foundation for future functional studies of chemosensory proteins in the melon fly and for making more detailed comparisons to other species. In the long term, this will ultimately help in the development of improved tools for pest management.
authors.affiliation: Commonwealth Science and Industry Organization (CSIRO), Biosecurity flagship, P.O. BOX 1700, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.
authors.forename: Samia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Elfekih
authors.affiliation: National Taiwan University, Department of Bio-industrial Mechatronics and Engineering, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chien-Yu
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: National Taiwan University, Department of Entomology, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ju-Chun
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.affiliation: Information and Computer Sciences, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Mahdi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Belcaid
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Haymer
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D019662:Cucurbitaceae / Q000469:parasitology*; D017344:Genes, Insect; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D016013:Likelihood Functions; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010465:Perception; D010802:Phylogeny; D017423:Sequence Analysis, RNA; D033621:Tephritidae / Q000235:genetics*; D059467:Transcriptome / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D019476:Insect Proteins