TY - JOUR
T1 - Chemosensory genes identified in the antennal transcriptome of the blowfly Calliphora stygia
AU - Leitch, Olivia
AU - Papanicolaou, Alexie
AU - Lennard, Chris
AU - Kirkbride, Paul
AU - Anderson, Alisha
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors acknowledge the two anonymous reviewers for their comments. Olivia Leitch was financially supported by the Australian Postgraduate Award scholarship and the Australian Federal Police, Forensics (Canberra).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 Leitch et al.
PY - 2015/3/31
Y1 - 2015/3/31
N2 - Background: Blowflies have relevance in areas of forensic science, agriculture, and medicine, primarily due to the ability of their larvae to develop on flesh. While it is widely accepted that blowflies rely heavily on olfaction for identifying and locating hosts, there is limited research regarding the underlying molecular mechanisms. Using next generation sequencing (Illumina), this research examined the antennal transcriptome of Calliphora stygia (Fabricius) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) to identify members of the major chemosensory gene families necessary for olfaction. Results: Representative proteins from all chemosensory gene families essential in insect olfaction were identified in the antennae of the blowfly C. stygia, including 50 odorant receptors, 22 ionotropic receptors, 21 gustatory receptors, 28 odorant binding proteins, 4 chemosensory proteins, and 3 sensory neuron membrane proteins. A total of 97 candidate cytochrome P450s and 39 esterases, some of which may act as odorant degrading enzymes, were also identified. Importantly, co-receptors necessary for the proper function of ligand-binding receptors were identified. Putative orthologues for the conserved antennal ionotropic receptors and candidate gustatory receptors for carbon dioxide detection were also amongst the identified proteins. Conclusions: This research provides a comprehensive novel resource that will be fundamental for future studies regarding blowfly olfaction. Such information presents potential benefits to the forensic, pest control, and medical areas, and could assist in the understanding of insecticide resistance and targeted control through cross-species comparisons.
AB - Background: Blowflies have relevance in areas of forensic science, agriculture, and medicine, primarily due to the ability of their larvae to develop on flesh. While it is widely accepted that blowflies rely heavily on olfaction for identifying and locating hosts, there is limited research regarding the underlying molecular mechanisms. Using next generation sequencing (Illumina), this research examined the antennal transcriptome of Calliphora stygia (Fabricius) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) to identify members of the major chemosensory gene families necessary for olfaction. Results: Representative proteins from all chemosensory gene families essential in insect olfaction were identified in the antennae of the blowfly C. stygia, including 50 odorant receptors, 22 ionotropic receptors, 21 gustatory receptors, 28 odorant binding proteins, 4 chemosensory proteins, and 3 sensory neuron membrane proteins. A total of 97 candidate cytochrome P450s and 39 esterases, some of which may act as odorant degrading enzymes, were also identified. Importantly, co-receptors necessary for the proper function of ligand-binding receptors were identified. Putative orthologues for the conserved antennal ionotropic receptors and candidate gustatory receptors for carbon dioxide detection were also amongst the identified proteins. Conclusions: This research provides a comprehensive novel resource that will be fundamental for future studies regarding blowfly olfaction. Such information presents potential benefits to the forensic, pest control, and medical areas, and could assist in the understanding of insecticide resistance and targeted control through cross-species comparisons.
KW - odorant receptors
KW - blowfly
KW - chemosensory
KW - Calliphora stygia
KW - Blowfly olfaction
KW - Transcriptome
KW - Chemosensory proteins
KW - Odorant receptors
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84927137461&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1186/s12864-015-1466-8
DO - 10.1186/s12864-015-1466-8
M3 - Article
C2 - 25880816
SN - 1471-2164
VL - 16
SP - 1
EP - 17
JO - BMC Genomics
JF - BMC Genomics
IS - 1
M1 - 255
ER -