title: UVB Radiation Delays Tribolium castaneum Metamorphosis by Influencing Ecdysteroid Metabolism.
abstract: Ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation is an important environmental factor. It is generally known that UVB exhibits high genotoxicity due to causing DNA damage, potentially leading to skin carcinogenesis and aging in mammals. However, little is known about the effects of UVB on the development and metamorphosis of insects, which are the most abundant terrestrial animals. In the present study, we performed dose-response analyses of the effects UVB irradiation on Tribolium castaneum metamorphosis, assessed the function of the T. castaneum prothoracicotropic hormone gene (Trcptth), and analyzed ecdysteroid pathway gene expression profile and ecdysterone titers post-UVB irradiation. The results showed that UVB not only caused death of T. castaneum larvae, but also delayed larval-pupal metamorphosis and reduced the size and emergence rate of pupae. In addition, we verified the function of Trcptth, which is responsible for regulating metamorphosis. It was also found that the expression profiles of Trcptth as well as ecdysteroidogenesis and response genes were influenced by UVB radiation. Therefore, a disturbance pulse of ecdysteroid may be involved in delaying development under exposure to irradiation. To our knowledge, this is the first report indicating that UVB can influence the metamorphosis of insects. This study will contribute to a better understanding of the impact of UVB on signaling mechanisms in insect metamorphosis.
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Wen
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology of Hubei Province, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Wei-Hua
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Zhi-Hui
authors.initials: ZH
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Fen
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Ping
authors.initials: XP
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Hubei Insect Resources Utilization and Sustainable Pest Management Key Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Chao-Liang
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Lei
mesh_terms: D051046:Amino-Acid N-Acetyltransferase; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D026461:Ecdysteroids / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D004441:Ecdysterone / Q000032:analysis / Q000502:physiology; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D017344:Genes, Insect / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D007814:Larva / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D008675:Metamorphosis, Biological / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects*; D010802:Phylogeny; D011679:Pupa / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D034622:RNA Interference; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D059467:Transcriptome; D014231:Tribolium / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects*; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays / Q000009:adverse effects*
chemical_list: D026461:Ecdysteroids; D004441:Ecdysterone; D051046:Amino-Acid N-Acetyltransferase