title: RNA interference unveils the importance of Pseudotrichonympha grassii cellobiohydrolase, a protozoan exoglucanase, in termite cellulose degradation.
abstract: Based on prior work, a cellulase from glycosyl hydrolase family 7 (GHF7) was identified and found to be expressed at a high level in Coptotermes formosanus. To determine the function of GHF7 family members in vivo, we used RNA interference (RNAi) to functionally analyse the exoglucanase gene Pseudotrichonympha grassii cellobiohydrolase gene (PgCBH), which was highly expressed in Pseudotrichonympha grassii, a flagellate found in the hindgut of C. formosanus. In this study, the expression level of PgCBH was down-regulated by RNAi, causing the death of P. grassii, but no effect was observed for other flagellates found in C. formosanus. RNAi also resulted in significantly reduced exoglucanase activity, and no effect was observed for endoglucanase and β-glucosidase activities. This result demonstrated that the PgCBH gene plays a role in the protist lignocellulolytic process and is also important for host survival. PgCBH can be used as a target gene and has potential as a bioinsecticide for use against termites.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: X-J
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhan
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky, KY, USA.
authors.forename: X-G
authors.initials: XG
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.|Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Q
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D002482:Cellulose / Q000378:metabolism*; D043366:Cellulose 1,4-beta-Cellobiosidase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020049:Isoptera / Q000469:parasitology*; D056900:Parabasalidea / Q000201:enzymology*; D034622:RNA Interference; D013559:Symbiosis
chemical_list: D002482:Cellulose; D043366:Cellulose 1,4-beta-Cellobiosidase
keywords: Coptotermes formosanus; Pseudotrichonympha grassii cellobiohydrolase gene (PgCBH); RNAi; exoglucanase; flagellate