Introduction to the Use of Baculoviruses as Biological Insecticides.

Baculoviruses are widely used both as protein expression vectors and as insect pest control agents. This section provides an overview of the baculovirus life cycle and use of baculoviruses as insecticidal agents. This chapter includes discussion of the pros and cons for use of baculoviruses as insecticides, and progress made in genetic enhancement of baculoviruses for improved insecticidal efficacy.

Pyrokinin/PBAN-like peptides in the central nervous system of mosquitoes.

The pyrokinin/pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (PBAN) family of peptides is characterized by a common C-terminal pentapeptide, FXPRLamide, which is required for diverse physiological functions in various insects. Polyclonal antisera against the C-terminus was utilized to determine the location of cell bodies and axons in the central nervous systems of larval and adult mosquitoes. Immunoreactive material was detected in three groups of neurons in the subesophageal ganglion of larvae and adults.

Identification and characterization of the pyrokinin/pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide family of G protein-coupled receptors from Ostrinia nubilalis.

Insects have two closely related G protein-coupled receptors belonging to the pyrokinin/pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (pyrokinin/PBAN) family, one with the ligand PBAN or pyrokinin-2 and another with diapause hormone or pyrokinin-1 as a ligand. A related receptor is activated by products of the capa gene, periviscerokinins. Here we characterized the PBAN receptor and the diapause hormone receptor from the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis.

Transcript analysis and comparative evaluation of shaker and slowmo gene homologues from the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis.

The movement and dispersal of larval Lepidoptera impact their survival and distribution within the natural landscape. Homologues of the Drosophila behaviour-linked genes shaker (shkr) and slowmo (slmo) were identified from Ostrinia nubilalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae). Onshkr was isolated as a 1610-nucleotide (nt) constitutively expressed transcript encoding a membrane-localized 469-amino-acid (aa) protein with a conserved tetramerization domain and the six-domain architecture necessary for the molecule to fold into an active K(+) channel.

A rearrangement of the Z chromosome topology influences the sex-linked gene display in the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis.

Males are homogametic (ZZ) and females are heterogametic (WZ) with respect to the sex chromosomes in many species of butterflies and moths (insect order Lepidoptera). Genes on the Z chromosome influence traits involved in larval development, environmental adaptation, and reproductive isolation. To facilitate the investigation of these traits across Lepidoptera, we developed 43 degenerate primer pairs to PCR amplify orthologs of 43 Bombyx mori Z chromosome-linked genes.

The pyrokinin/ pheromone biosynthesis-activating neuropeptide (PBAN) family of peptides and their receptors in Insecta: evolutionary trace indicates potential receptor ligand-binding domains.

The pyrokinin/pheromone biosynthesis-activating neuropeptide (PBAN) family of G-protein-coupled receptors and their ligands have been identified in various insects. Physiological functions of pyrokinin peptides include muscle contraction, whereas PBAN regulates, among other functions, pheromone production in moths which indicates the pleiotropic nature of these peptides. Based on the alignment of annotated genomic sequences, the pyrokinin/PBAN family of receptors have similarity with the corresponding structures of the capa or periviscerokinin receptors of insects and the neuromedin U receptors of vertebrates.

The natural genetic engineering of polydnaviruses.

The polydnaviruses represent an unusual example of a highly evolved symbiosis between some parasitic wasps, DNA containing particles or viruses, and lepidopteran larval hosts of the wasp. The viruses can no longer replicate independently, as genes that encode viral structural proteins are restricted to the wasp genome and are not encapsidated. Interestingly, the DNA that is encapsidated is more similar in terms of gene identity and gene density to eukaryotic genomes than viral genomes.

Introduction to the use of baculoviruses as biological insecticides.

Baculoviruses are widely used both as protein expression vectors and as insect pest control agents. This section provides an overview of the baculovirus lifecycle and use of baculoviruses as insecticidal agents. This chapter includes discussion of the pros and cons for use of baculoviruses as insecticides, and progress made in genetic enhancement of baculoviruses for improved insecticidal efficacy.