title: Effect of RNAi-mediated knockdown of NlTOR gene on fertility of male Nilaparvata lugens.
abstract: The target gene of rapamycin (TOR) is conserved from invertebrates to vertebrates, and plays critical roles in cell growth, nutrient sensing, lifespan and reproduction. In this paper, we employed RNA interference (RNAi) to study the function of TOR in male brown planthoppers (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens. Here we discovered that no offspring was produced when wildtype females BPH mated with NlTOR RNAi males. To understand the influence of NlTOR on male BPH infertility, we dissected the reproductive system of a NlTOR RNAi male, and found that the testes were normal and the seminal vesicles were full of sperm, while the accessory gland was poorly developed after knocking down NlTOR expression. Furthermore, transmission electron microscopy data showed defective structure of epithelial cells of the accessory gland, and the deferent duct was collapsed. Also, behavioral data revealed that wildtype virgin females refused to mate with NlTOR RNAi males, and the acoustic signals of dsNlTOR males differed from controls. Our results indicate that NlTOR plays an essential role in the development of the male BPH reproductive system and regulates mating behavior.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
authors.forename: Ji-Chong
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Zhuo
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
authors.forename: Jia-Bao
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
authors.forename: Hai-Jian
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China. Electronic address: haijunxu@zju.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Hai-Jun
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China. Electronic address: chxzhang@zju.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Chuan-Xi
authors.initials: CX
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D055785:Gene Knockdown Techniques; D006430:Hemiptera / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D034622:RNA Interference; D015398:Signal Transduction; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D019476:Insect Proteins; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases
keywords: Acoustic signals; Brown planthopper; Fertility; Male reproductive system; Target of rapamycin