AUTHOR=Zhao Yunhe , Ding Jinfeng , Zhang Zhengqun , Liu Feng , Zhou Chenggang , Mu Wei 

TITLE=Sex- and Tissue-Specific Expression Profiles of Odorant Binding Protein and Chemosensory Protein Genes in Bradysia odoriphaga (Diptera: Sciaridae)

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Physiology

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2018

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/physiology/articles/10.3389/fphys.2018.00107

DOI=10.3389/fphys.2018.00107

ISSN=1664-042X

ABSTRACT=<p><italic>Bradysia odoriphaga</italic> is an agricultural pest insect affecting the production of Chinese chive and other liliaceous vegetables in China, and it is significantly attracted by sex pheromones and the volatiles derived from host plants. Despite verification of this chemosensory behavior, however, it is still unknown how <italic>B. odoriphaga</italic> recognizes these volatile compounds on the molecular level. Many of odorant binding proteins (OBPs) and chemosensory proteins (CSPs) play crucial roles in olfactory perception. Here, we identified 49 OBP and 5 CSP genes from the antennae and body transcriptomes of female and male adults of <italic>B. odoriphaga</italic>, respectively. Sequence alignment and phylogenetic analysis among Dipteran OBPs and CSPs were analyzed. The sex- and tissue-specific expression profiles of 54 putative chemosensory genes among different tissues were investigated by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). qRT-PCR analysis results suggested that 22 OBP and 3 CSP genes were enriched in the antennae, indicating they might be essential for detection of general odorants and pheromones. Among these antennae-enriched genes, nine OBPs (<italic>BodoOBP2/4/6/8/12/13/20/28/33</italic>) were enriched in the male antennae and may play crucial roles in the detection of sex pheromones. Moreover, some OBP and CSP genes were enriched in non-antennae tissues, such as in the legs (<italic>BodoOBP3/9/19/21/34/35/38/39/45</italic> and <italic>BodoCSP1</italic>), wings (<italic>BodoOBP17/30/32/37/44</italic>), abdomens and thoraxes (<italic>BodoOBP29/36</italic>), and heads (<italic>BodoOBP14/23/31</italic> and <italic>BodoCSP2</italic>), suggesting that these genes might be involved in olfactory, gustatory, or other physiological processes. Our findings provide a starting point to facilitate functional research of these chemosensory genes in <italic>B. odoriphaga</italic> at the molecular level.</p>