Research abstract
Article abstract
Nature Biotechnology 25, 1307 - 1313 (2007)
Published online: 4 November 2007 | doi:10.1038/nbt1352
Silencing a cotton bollworm P450 monooxygenase gene by plant-mediated RNAi impairs larval tolerance of gossypol
Ying-Bo Mao1,2, Wen-Juan Cai1,2, Jia-Wei Wang1,2, Gao-Jie Hong1,2, Xiao-Yuan Tao1,2, Ling-Jian Wang1, Yong-Ping Huang1 & Xiao-Ya Chen1
Abstract
We identify a cytochrome P450 gene (CYP6AE14) from cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera), which permits this herbivore to tolerate otherwise inhibitory concentrations of the cotton metabolite, gossypol. CYP6AE14 is highly expressed in the midgut and its expression correlates with larval growth when gossypol is included in the diet. When larvae are fed plant material expressing double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) specific to CYP6AE14, levels of this transcript in the midgut decrease and larval growth is retarded. Both effects are more dramatic in the presence of gossypol. As a glutathione-S-transferase gene (GST1) is silenced in GST1 dsRNA–expressing plants, feeding insects plant material expressing dsRNA may be a general strategy to trigger RNA interference and could find applications in entomological research and field control of insect pests.
- National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 300 Fenglin Road, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai 200032, P.R. China.
- Graduate School of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 300 Fenglin Road, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai 200032, P.R. China.
Correspondence to: Xiao-Ya Chen1 e-mail: xychen@sibs.ac.cn
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