Flexible origin of hydrocarbon/pheromone precursors in Drosophila melanogaster

Wicker-Thomas, Claude; Garrido, Damien; Bontonou, Gwénaëlle; Napal, Laura; Mazuras, Nicolas; Denis, Béatrice; Rubin, Thomas; Parvy, Jean-Philippe; Montagne, Jacques

doi:10.1194/jlr.m060368

Cited by 101 publications

(158 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Larval oenocytes control storage lipid turnover and energy homeostasis in peripheral tissues during fasting (Gutierrez et al, 2007). Adult oenocytes carry out the synthesis of very long chain fatty acids, which fuel the formation of cuticular hydrocarbons that protect the fly from desiccation and act as pheromones (Wicker-Thomas et al, 2015). Interestingly, these authors found that an obesogenic diet decreased cuticular hydrocarbon production whereas fatty acid synthesis and lipophorin receptor expression in the fat body promoted cuticular hydrocarbon synthesis.…”

Section: The Fat Body and Oenocytesmentioning

confidence: 81%

Drosophilaas a model to study obesity and metabolic disease

Musselman

Kühnlein

2018

Journal of Experimental Biology

175

130

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Excess adipose fat accumulation, or obesity, is a growing problem worldwide in terms of both the rate of incidence and the severity of obesity-associated metabolic disease. Adipose tissue evolved in animals as a specialized dynamic lipid storage depot: adipose cells synthesize fat (a process called lipogenesis) when energy is plentiful and mobilize stored fat (a process called lipolysis) when energy is needed. When a disruption of lipid homeostasis favors increased fat synthesis and storage with little turnover owing to genetic predisposition, overnutrition or sedentary living, complications such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease are more likely to arise. The vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster (Diptera: Drosophilidae) is used as a model to better understand the mechanisms governing fat metabolism and distribution. Flies offer a wealth of paradigms with which to study the regulation and physiological effects of fat accumulation. Obese flies accumulate triacylglycerols in the fat body, an organ similar to mammalian adipose tissue, which specializes in lipid storage and catabolism. Discoveries in Drosophila have ranged from endocrine hormones that control obesity to subcellular mechanisms that regulate lipogenesis and lipolysis, many of which are evolutionarily conserved. Furthermore, obese flies exhibit pathophysiological complications, including hyperglycemia, reduced longevity and cardiovascular functionsimilar to those observed in obese humans. Here, we review some of the salient features of the fly that enable researchers to study the contributions of feeding, absorption, distribution and the metabolism of lipids to systemic physiology.

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Section: The Fat Body and Oenocytesmentioning

confidence: 81%

Drosophilaas a model to study obesity and metabolic disease

Musselman

Kühnlein

2018

Journal of Experimental Biology

175

130

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“…In Drosophila serrata , RNAi‐mediated knockdown of FASN3 using an oenocyte‐specific driver was lethal, whilst knockdown of FASN2 led to a significant reduction in cuticle methyl‐branched HCs, associated with a decrease in desiccation resistance (Chung et al ., ). Using the same approach, the knockdown of FASN3 in D. melanogaster had no effect upon the cuticle HC content but led to a moderate decrease in desiccation resistance, whilst knockdown of FASN2 caused a reduction in the methyl‐branched HC amount but was not related to desiccation resistance (Wicker‐Thomas et al ., ). Taken together, these results show that the function of the FASN genes can be different even in closely related species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To date, the function of insect FASN genes has been thoroughly studied only in some Drosophila species (Parvy et al ., ; Chung et al ., ; Wicker‐Thomas et al ., ). More recently, Tan et al .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A fatty acid synthase gene (FASN3) from the integument tissue of Rhodnius prolixus contributes to cuticle water loss regulation

Moriconi

Dulbecco

Juárez

et al. 2019

Insect Molecular Biology

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Fatty acid synthase is a multifunctional enzyme involved in the formation of fatty acids. Despite the role of fatty acids in cell signalling and energy metabolism, and as precursors to pheromones and hydrocarbons that waterproof the cuticle, the insect fatty acid synthases have been scarcely studied. Here we perform the molecular characterization of three fatty acid synthase genes (fatty acid synthase RPRC000123, RPRC000269 and RPRC002909) in the Chagas disease vector, Rhodnius prolixus. Gene expression screening by reverse transcription quantitative PCR showed that RPRC000123 and RPRC002909 are expressed almost exclusively in the integument tissue whilst RPRC000269 is mostly expressed in the fat body and also in several body organs. Phylogenetic analysis, together with gene expression results, showed that RPRC000269, RPRC002909 and RPRC000123 are orthologues of Drosophila melanogaster fatty acid synthase 1 (FASN1), FASN2 and FASN3 genes, respectively. After RNA interference‐mediated knockdown of RPRC000123, insects died immediately after moulting to the next developmental stage. However, mortality was prevented by placing the insects under saturated humidity conditions, suggesting that dehydration might play a role in the insects’ death. Lipid analyses in RPRC000123‐silenced insects showed reduced amounts of integument fatty acids and methyl‐branched hydrocarbons, compared to controls. These data support an important role for FASN3 in the biosynthesis of the precursors to hydrocarbons that waterproof the insect cuticle.

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“…Cuticular HCs are synthesized by endodermal oenocytes (Schal et al , ; Martins and Ramalho‐Ortigão, ; Makki et al , ) and are then transported to the epicuticle by the haemolymph protein lipophorin (Schal et al , ; Blomquist and Bagneres, ). Biosynthesis of HCs occurs through the following basic steps: (1) carboxylation of acetyl‐CoA (acetyl coenzyme A) by acetyl‐CoA carboxylase (ACC) to form malonyl‐CoA (Wicker‐Thomas et al , ); (2) elongation of acetyl‐CoA by fatty acid synthases (FASs) to form palmitic acid (C 16 ) (Garrido et al , ; Wicker‐Thomas et al , ); (3) elongase (ELO)‐mediated extension of palmityl‐CoA to form long chain and very long chain fatty acyl‐CoAs (Chertemps et al , ); (4) long chain fatty acyl‐CoAs are reduced to alcohols by a fatty acyl‐CoA reductase (FAR); and (5) the long chain fatty alcohols are oxidized to aldehydes that are then converted into HCs by cytochrome p450 CYP4G , which encodes an oxidative decarbonylase belonging to the cytochrome P450 gene family (MacLean et al , ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydrocarbons catalysed by TmCYP4G122 and TmCYP4G123 in Tenebrio molitor modulate the olfactory response of the parasitoid Scleroderma guani

Wang

Price

Zhang

2019

Insect Molecular Biology

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Hydrocarbons (HCs) present on the epicuticle of terrestrial insects are not only used to reduce water loss but are also used as chemical signals. The cytochrome p450 CYP4G gene is essential for HC biosynthesis in some insects. However, its function in Tenebrio molitor is unknown. Moreover, it is not yet known whether CYP4G of a host can modulate the searching behaviours of its parasitoid. Here, we explore the function of the TmCYP4G122 and CYP4G123 genes in T. molitor. The TmCYP4G122 and CYP4G123 transcripts could be detected in all developmental stages. Their expression was higher in the fat body and abdominal cuticle than in the gut. Their transcript levels in mature larvae under desiccation stress [relative humidity (RH) < 5%] was significantly higher than that in the control (RH = 70%). Injection of dsCYP4G122 and dsCYP4G123 caused a reduction in HC biosynthesis and was associated with increased susceptibility to desiccation. Individuals of the parasitoid Scleroderma guani that emerged from mealworm pupae showed host preference for normal pupae whereas S. guani that emerged from pupae lacking CYP4G122 or/and CYP4G123 lost this searching preference. The current results confirm that CYP4G122 and CYP4G123 regulate the biosynthesis of HCs and modulate the olfactory response of its parasitoid S. guani.

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Flexible origin of hydrocarbon/pheromone precursors in Drosophila melanogaster

Cited by 101 publications

References 34 publications

Drosophilaas a model to study obesity and metabolic disease

Drosophilaas a model to study obesity and metabolic disease

A fatty acid synthase gene (FASN3) from the integument tissue of Rhodnius prolixus contributes to cuticle water loss regulation

Hydrocarbons catalysed by TmCYP4G122 and TmCYP4G123 in Tenebrio molitor modulate the olfactory response of the parasitoid Scleroderma guani

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