Expression Levels of Odorant Receptor Genes in the Savanna Tsetse Fly, Glossina morsitans morsitans. 2018

Steven Ger Nyanjom, and Cyrus Tare, and Fred Wamunyokoli, and George Fredrick Obiero
Department of Biochemistry, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Nairobi, Kenya.

Tsetse flies (Glossina) are vectors of African trypanosomiasis. Olfaction plays a critical role in Glossina behavior, including larviposition, feeding, and reproduction. Odorant receptors (ORs) are important in insect chemoreception as they bind volatile odorants and transport them to olfactory receptor neurons to elicit behavioral response. To better understand Glossina chemoreception, we used quantitative polymerase chain reaction to examine the expression levels of ORs in female and male Glossina morsitans morsitans Wiedemann, 1850 (Diptera: Glossinidae) antennae and legs. Results showed that G. m. morsitans ORs code for a transmembrane domain and are involved in odorant binding. The ORs had homologs in Drosophila, mosquitoes, other Glossina species, and the reduced number of tsetse ORs could be linked to its restricted blood-feeding diet. The OR genes were more highly expressed in antennae than the legs with GmmOR33 and GmmOR45 transcript levels being high in the female and male antennae, respectively, whereas GmmOR26 and GmmOR34 levels were high in female and male G. m. morsitans legs, respectively. These findings identified sex- and tissue-specific G. m. morsitans ORs. The expression levels of OR genes in female and male G. m. morsitans could be conserved in function with the antenna being the main olfactory organ. Thus, this study provides a blueprint to explore the functional roles of tsetse ORs with the potential to identify molecular targets that can be used to control the vector based on disruption of its chemosensory system.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D005260 Female Females
D005786 Gene Expression Regulation Any of the processes by which nuclear, cytoplasmic, or intercellular factors influence the differential control (induction or repression) of gene action at the level of transcription or translation. Gene Action Regulation,Regulation of Gene Expression,Expression Regulation, Gene,Regulation, Gene Action,Regulation, Gene Expression
D000818 Animals Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA. Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D014370 Tsetse Flies Bloodsucking flies of the genus Glossina, found primarily in equatorial Africa. Several species are intermediate hosts of trypanosomes. Glossina,Flies, Tsetse,Fly, Tsetse,Glossinas,Tsetse Fly
D059467 Transcriptome The pattern of GENE EXPRESSION at the level of genetic transcription in a specific organism or under specific circumstances in specific cells. Transcriptomes,Gene Expression Profiles,Gene Expression Signatures,Transcriptome Profiles,Expression Profile, Gene,Expression Profiles, Gene,Expression Signature, Gene,Expression Signatures, Gene,Gene Expression Profile,Gene Expression Signature,Profile, Gene Expression,Profile, Transcriptome,Profiles, Gene Expression,Profiles, Transcriptome,Signature, Gene Expression,Signatures, Gene Expression,Transcriptome Profile
D018035 Receptors, Odorant Proteins, usually projecting from the cilia of olfactory receptor neurons, that specifically bind odorant molecules and trigger responses in the neurons. The large number of different odorant receptors appears to arise from several gene families or subfamilies rather than from DNA rearrangement. Odorant Receptors,Olfactory Receptor Proteins,Odor Receptor Protein,Odorant Receptor,Olfactory Receptor,Olfactory Receptor Protein,Olfactory Receptors,Receptor Proteins, Odorant,Receptor Proteins, Olfactory,Odorant Receptor Proteins,Protein, Odor Receptor,Protein, Olfactory Receptor,Proteins, Odorant Receptor,Proteins, Olfactory Receptor,Receptor Protein, Odor,Receptor Protein, Olfactory,Receptor, Odorant,Receptor, Olfactory,Receptors, Olfactory
D019476 Insect Proteins Proteins found in any species of insect. Insect Protein,Protein, Insect,Proteins, Insect

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