title: Bombyx mori P-element Somatic Inhibitor (BmPSI) Is a Key Auxiliary Factor for Silkworm Male Sex Determination.
abstract: Manipulation of sex determination pathways in insects provides the basis for a wide spectrum of strategies to benefit agriculture and public health. Furthermore, insects display a remarkable diversity in the genetic pathways that lead to sex differentiation. The silkworm, Bombyx mori, has been cultivated by humans as a beneficial insect for over two millennia, and more recently as a model system for studying lepidopteran genetics and development. Previous studies have identified the B. mori Fem piRNA as the primary female determining factor and BmMasc as its downstream target, while the genetic scenario for male sex determination was still unclear. In the current study, we exploite the transgenic CRISPR/Cas9 system to generate a comprehensive set of knockout mutations in genes BmSxl, Bmtra2, BmImp, BmImpM, BmPSI and BmMasc, to investigate their roles in silkworm sex determination. Absence of Bmtra2 results in the complete depletion of Bmdsx transcripts, which is the conserved downstream factor in the sex determination pathway, and induces embryonic lethality. Loss of BmImp or BmImpM function does not affect the sexual differentiation. Mutations in BmPSI and BmMasc genes affect the splicing of Bmdsx and the female reproductive apparatus appeared in the male external genital. Intriguingly, we identify that BmPSI regulates expression of BmMasc, BmImpM and Bmdsx, supporting the conclusion that it acts as a key auxiliary factor in silkworm male sex determination.
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, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-7963-0253
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xu
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, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Shuqing
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chen
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, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Baosheng
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.affiliation: Departments of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics and Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Anthony A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: James
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: Anjiang
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tan
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: Yongping
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D012831:Bombyx / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development; D005260:Female; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D009154:Mutation; D012326:RNA Splicing; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D019849:Sex Determination Processes / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D019476:Insect Proteins; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins