Involvement of mind the gap in the organization of the tracheal apical extracellular matrix in Drosophila and Nilaparvata lugens.

The tracheal apical extracellular matrix (aECM) is vital for expansion of the tracheal lumen and supports the normal structure of the lumen to guarantee air entry and circulation in insects. Although it has been found that some cuticular proteins are involved in the organization of the aECM, unidentified factors still exist. Here, we found that mind the gap (Mtg), a predicted chitin-binding protein, is required for the normal formation of the apical chitin matrix of airway tubes in the model holometabolous insect Drosophila melanogaster.

Genome-Wide Screening and Functional Analysis Reveal That the Specific microRNA nlu-miR-173 Regulates Molting by Targeting Ftz-F1 in .

Molting is a crucial physiological behavior during arthropod growth. In the past few years, molting as well as chitin biosynthesis triggered by molting, is subject to regulation by miRNAs. However, how many miRNAs are involved in insect molting at the genome-wide level remains unknown.