Transcriptome comparison of Dendrolimus sibiricus larvae with 1-year and 2-year life cycles
This study presents transcriptome data for Dendrolimus sibiricus (Siberian silk moth) larvae with 1-year and 2-year life cycles. D. sibiricus completes development from egg to adult within two calendar years, commonly referred to as a 1-year life cycle because larvae overwinter once. Under some environmental conditions, however, a subset of larvae experiences an extended larval stage, prolonging development through the summer months. These larvae descend again in autumn for a second overwintering, thus exhibiting a 2-year life cycle. The aim of the study was to investigate the physiological and molecular mechanisms underlying the life cycle variability of D. sibiricus.The dataset includes RNA-seq profiles of larvae with 1-year and 2-year life cycles. Larvae were dissected into three tissue sets representing major endocrine, digestive, and storage/metabolic compartments. The head set comprised the head capsule and first two body segments, including the brain and endocrine glands that regulate juvline hormone and ecdysteroid titres during diapause and metamorphosis. The gut set comprised the gut, gonads, and Malpighian tubules and was chosen to capture changes in the digestive and reproductive organs. The fat body set comprised the fat body, cuticle, and remaining internal organs, capturing systemic metabolic and storage responses.Across tissue sets, principal component analyses and differential expression tests showed that transcriptomic variation was structured primarily by life cycle and secondarily by sex, with 2-year larvae consistently down-regulating genes linked to growth and anabolic metabolism and up-regulating genes involved in stress tolerance, catabolism, proteasome function and detoxification.These transcriptomes may be useful for studies in insect physiology and ecology, including predicting population dynamics, insect diapause and developmental plasticity.