Temperature perception by ER UPR promotes preventive innate immunity and longevity.

Microbial infectivity increases with rising environmental temperature, heightening the risk of infection to host organisms. The host's basal immunity is activated accordingly to mitigate upcoming pathogenic threats; still, how animals sense temperature elevation to adjust their preventive immune response remains elusive. This study reports that high temperature enhances innate immunity differently from pathogen infection.

Effects of reactive oxygen species and mitochondrial dysfunction on reproductive aging.

Mitochondria, the versatile organelles crucial for cellular and organismal viability, play a pivotal role in meeting the energy requirements of cells through the respiratory chain located in the inner mitochondrial membrane, concomitant with the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). A wealth of evidence derived from contemporary investigations on reproductive longevity strongly indicates that the aberrant elevation of ROS level constitutes a fundamental factor in hastening the aging process of reproductive systems which are responsible for transmission of DNA to future generations. Constant changes in redox status, with a pro-oxidant shift mainly through the mitochondrial generation of ROS, are linked to the modulation of physiological and pathological pathways in gametes and reproductive tissues.

Juvenile hormone suppresses the FoxO-takeout axis to shorten longevity in male silkworm.

Juvenile hormone (JH) plays a crucial endocrine regulatory role in insect metamorphosis, reproduction, and longevity in multiple organisms, such as flies, honeybees, and migratory monarch butterflies. However, the molecular mechanism of JH affecting longevity remains largely unknown. In this study, we showed that JH III and its analog methoprene shortened the survival days significantly in the adulthood of male silkworm.

Hybrid membrane of flat silk cocoon and carboxymethyl chitosan formed through hot pressing promotes wound healing and repair in a rat model.

Clinical wound management is always a relatively urgent problem. Moreover, wounds, especially severe wounds with excessive tension or excessive movement are prone to tissue infection, necrosis, and other negative effects during healing. Therefore, research has aimed to develop low-cost complementary treatments to address the urgent need for an innovative low-cost dressing that can adapt to high mechanical requirements and complex wound conditions.

Lycium barbarum polysaccharide improves dopamine metabolism and symptoms in an MPTP-induced model of Parkinson's disease.

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in middle-aged and elderly populations, whereas there is no cure for PD so far. Novel animal models and medications await development to elucidate the aetiology of PD and attenuate the symptoms, respectively.

Methods: A neurotoxin, 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP), was used in the current study to establish a PD pathologic model in silkworms.

High-resolution silkworm pan-genome provides genetic insights into artificial selection and ecological adaptation.

The silkworm Bombyx mori is an important economic insect for producing silk, the "queen of fabrics". The currently available genomes limit the understanding of its genetic diversity and the discovery of valuable alleles for breeding. Here, we deeply re-sequence 1,078 silkworms and assemble long-read genomes for 545 representatives.

Resveratrol elongates the lifespan and improves antioxidant activity in the silkworm .

A number of research has shown that the plant polyphenol resveratrol, one of the most prominent small molecules, has beneficial protective effects in multiple organisms, including worms, flies, and killifish. To understand the effects of resveratrol on lifespan, we evaluated its effects in the silkworm . In this study, we found that lifespan was significantly prolonged in both female and male silkworms treated with resveratrol.

The transcription factor ZmNAC126 accelerates leaf senescence downstream of the ethylene signalling pathway in maize.

Leaf senescence is an integral part of plant development, during which, nutrients are remobilized from senescent leaves to fast-growing organs. The initiation and progression dynamics of leaf senescence is therefore vital not only to the maximal accumulation of assimilates but also to the efficient remobilization of nutrients. Senescence is a finely tuned process that involves the action of a large number of transcription factors (TFs).

Fibroblast growth factor 21 prolongs lifespan and improves stress tolerance in the silkworm, .

Background: Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), an FGF family member, is an atypical hormone and pro-longevity factor.

Methods: To better understand of the effects of exogenous administration of FGF21 on lifespan and stress tolerance, and the underlying molecular basis, we used the silkworm, , as an experimental animal model to evaluate FGF21's pharmaceutical effects.

Results: Lifespan was significantly prolonged in female silkworms with FGF21 replenishment, whereas no effect was observed in the male silkworms.

Evaluation of the silkworm mutant as an invertebrate animal model for human sepiapterin reductase deficiency.

Human sepiapterin reductase (SR) deficiency is an inherited disease caused by gene mutations and is a monoamine neurotransmitter disorder. Here, we investigated whether the silkworm mutant could serve as a model of SR deficiency. A point mutation in the gene led to a five amino acid deletion at the carboxyl terminus in the mutant.

Flight Muscle and Wing Mechanical Properties are Involved in Flightlessness of the Domestic Silkmoth, .

Flight loss has occurred in many winged insect taxa. The flightless silkmoth , is domesticated from the wild silkmoth, , which can fly. In this paper, we studied morphological characteristics attributed to flightlessness in silkmoths.

Topical application of silk fibroin-based hydrogel in preventing hypertrophic scars.

Current medications for the treatment of hypertrophic scars suffer from bottlenecks of limited therapeutic efficacy and a slow recovery rate. Silk fibroin (SF) has gained attention for its ability to promote wound healing in burns and cutaneous wounds, but its therapeutic effects against hypertrophic scar have not been thoroughly investigated. We prepared SF-based hydrogels (SFHs) with various SF concentrations (1.

Polysaccharide Extends Lifespan via Mitigating Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress in the Silkworm, .

The traditional Chinese medicine polysaccharide (APS) has been widely used to improve glucose homeostasis and immunoregulator properties. In recent years, it has also been shown to extend the lifespan of ; however, the underlying molecular mechanisms are not fully understood. Here, our study shows that APS could significantly extend adult stage, mean, and maximum lifespan of the silkworm, and increase body weight without affecting food intake and fecundity.

Comparative analysis of integument transcriptomes identifies genes that participate in marking pattern formation in three allelic mutants of silkworm, Bombyx mori.

The diversity markings and pigment patterns in insects are outcomes of adaptive evolution. The elucidation of the molecular mechanism underlying variations in pigment patterns may improve our understanding of the origin and evolution of these spectacular diverse phenotypes. Melanin, ommochrome, and pteridine are the three main types of insect pigments, and the genes that directly participate in pigment biosynthesis have been extensively studied.

Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Profiling of Wnt Family Genes in the Silkworm, .

Wnt is a family of conserved glycoproteins that participate in a variety of important biological processes including embryo development, cell proliferation and differentiation, and tissue regeneration. The Wnt family is a metazoan novelty found in all animal phyla. Studies have revealed that the number of genes varies among species, presumably due to reproduction and loss of genes during evolution.

Metformin prolongs lifespan through remodeling the energy distribution strategy in silkworm, .

Metformin is a hypoglycemic agent used clinically in the treatment of type 2 diabetics. In addition, metformin is being investigated as a potential geroprotector. Here, we investigated the effects of metformin silkworm lifespan and the underlying molecular pathways involved.

Genome-wide identification and analysis of elongase of very long chain fatty acid genes in the silkworm, Bombyx mori.

Very long chain fatty acids (VLCFAs), such as sphingolipids, are components of cellular lipids, which are essential for cell proliferation. Mutations in the genes that encode proteins participating in VLCFA biosynthesis may cause inherited diseases, such as macular degeneration. Elongases of very long chain fatty acid (ELOVL) are enzymes that are involved in the biosynthesis of VLCFAs.

Hippo pathway regulates somatic development and cell proliferation of silkworm.

Hippo signaling pathway (signaling pathway Hippo, hereinafter referred to as the Hippo pathway) was the earliest found in Drosophila (Schneck [1]), which can regulate the development of tissues and organs, even some components of the pathway were identified as tumor suppressor [2]. The pathway was more concerned in fruit flies and mice (Schneck [1]), but little attention has been given in silkworm, an important economic and lepidopteran model insect. In this manuscript, we identified major Hippo pathway related genes (Hippo, Salvador, Warts, Mats, Yorkie) in silkworm and named BmHpo, BmSav, BmWts, BmMats, BmYki.

Variation of lifespan in multiple strains, and effects of dietary restriction and BmFoxO on lifespan in silkworm, Bombyx mori.

Established animal models have accelerated our understanding of the mechanisms involved in lifespan determination. However, more experimental animals are required to clarify the complex mechanisms behind the phenomena of aging and lifespan. In this study, we reported the variation of lifespan in nine distinct silkworm strains.

[Progress and perspective of silkworm as a model of human diseases for drug screening].

As a typical representative of Lepidopteran insects, the silkworm, Bombyx mori, has numerous advantages, such as simple husbandry,highly prolific nature, short generation time, easily handled to be operated with moderate body size, clear genetic background and abundant mutation resources. Silkworm has not only been studied by the geneticists, but also been used as a new laboratory animal model of human disease and drug screening. There is a plenty of genetic resources in silkworm, some of which could be used as models of human genetic diseases, such as Phenylketonuria, Parkinson’s disease, Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome and so on.

Molecular mapping and characterization of the silkworm apodal mutant.

The morphological diversity of insects is important for their survival; in essence, it results from the differential expression of genes during development of the insect body. The silkworm apodal (ap) mutant has degraded thoracic legs making crawling and eating difficult and the female is sterile, which is an ideal subject for studying the molecular mechanisms of morphogenesis. Here, we confirmed that the infertility of ap female moths is a result of the degradation of the bursa copulatrix.

Rhodiola rosea extends lifespan and improves stress tolerance in silkworm, Bombyx mori.

The root of Rhodiola rosea is widely used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. The extract from R. rosea is reported to extend the lifespan of yeast, nematode, and fruit fly.