| Title: | Disruption of egg-specific protein causes female sterility in Bombyx mori |
| Author(s): | Xu X; Wang YH; Liu ZL; Wang YQ; He L; Li K; Huang YP; |
| Address: | "Institute of Sericulture and Tea Research, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, 310021, China. Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200032, China. School of Life Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, China" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1744-7917 (Electronic) 1672-9609 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Yolk proteins are the main source of nutrients during embryonic and early larval development in oviparous animals. Therefore, vitellogenesis is crucial for reproduction. The silkworm, Bombyx mori, is a model lepidopteran insect in which there are three yolk proteins: vitellin, 30-kDa protein, and egg-specific protein (Esp). In this study, we explored the gene function of Esp through transgenic clustered regularly interspaced palindromic repeats (CRISPR) / CRISPR-associated protein 9 technology-mediated mutations in the silkworm. We found that Esp mutation resulted in female sterility but had no effect on male fertility. Female mutants could lay eggs after mating, but the eggs were smaller and lighter colored than those laid by wild-type females. The most important finding is that the eggs laid by female mutants did not hatch. Furthermore, we observed stable inheritance of female sterility caused by Esp mutation through successive generations. Thus, Esp encodes a yolk protein that is crucial for female reproductive success and is a potential target for pest control" |
| Keywords: | "Animals Animals, Genetically Modified *Bombyx/genetics Egg Proteins Female *Infertility, Female Insect Proteins/genetics Male Bombyx mori CRISPR/Cas9 Esp female sterility;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineXu, Xia Wang, Yao-Hui Liu, Zu-Lian Wang, Yong-Qiang He, Lin Li, Kai Huang, Yong-Ping eng 2016C02054/Key Technologies R & D Program for Crop Breeding of Zhejiang Province/ 31530072/National Natural Science Foundation of China/ 31970476/National Natural Science Foundation of China/ CARS-18/China Agriculture Research System/ Australia 2021/02/26 Insect Sci. 2022 Feb; 29(1):128-138. doi: 10.1111/1744-7917.12904. Epub 2021 Feb 24" |
