Search results for "Bombyx"

ABCC transporters mediate insect resistance to multiple Bt toxins revealed by bulk segregant analysis

2014

[EN] Background: Relatively recent evidence indicates that ABCC2 transporters play a main role in the mode of action of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) Cry1A-type proteins. Mapping of major Cry1A resistance genes has linked resistance to the ABCC2 locus in Heliothis virescens, Plutella xylostella, Trichoplusia ni and Bombyx mori, and mutations in this gene have been found in three of these Bt-resistant strains. Results: We have used a colony of Spodoptera exigua (Xen-R) highly resistant to a Bt commercial bioinsecticide to identify regions in the S. exigua genome containing loci for major resistance genes by using bulk segregant analysis (BSA). Results reveal a region containing three genes fro…

Endothelialization of a non-woven silk fibroin net for use in tissue engineering: growth and gene regulation of human endothelial cells

2004

Abstract We have previously shown that a biomaterial consisting of a non-woven fibroin net produced from silk (Bombyx mori) cocoons is an excellent scaffolding material for a wide variety of human cells of different tissue types. Endothelialization must take place for a biomaterial to be successful after implantation. Therefore, primary human endothelial cells and the human endothelial cell lines, HPMEC-ST1.6R and ISO-HAS-1, were examined for adherence and growth patterns on the fibroin nets by confocal laser scanning microscopy after vital staining of the cells and by electron microscopy. Endothelial cells adhered and spread along individual fibers of the nets and did not fill the gaps bet…

The crystal structure of a cockroach pheromone-binding protein suggests a new ligand binding and release mechanism.

2003

Pheromone-binding proteins (PBPs) are small helical proteins found in sensorial organs, particularly in the antennae, of moth and other insect species. They were proposed to solubilize and carry the hydrophobic pheromonal compounds through the antennal lymph to receptors, participating thus in the peri-receptor events of signal transduction. The x-ray structure of Bombyx mori PBP (BmorPBP), from male antennae, revealed a six-helix fold forming a cavity that contains the pheromone bombykol. We have identified a PBP (LmaPBP) from the cockroach Leucophaea maderae in the antennae of the females, the gender attracted by pheromones in this species. Here we report the crystal structure of LmaPBP a…

Silk fibroin scaffolds enhance cell commitment of adult rat cardiac progenitor cells.

2015

The use of three-dimensional (3D) cultures may induce cardiac progenitor cells to synthesize their own extracellular matrix (ECM) and sarcomeric proteins to initiate cardiac differentiation. 3D cultures grown on synthetic scaffolds may favour the implantation and survival of stem cells for cell therapy when pharmacological therapies are not efficient in curing cardiovascular diseases and when organ transplantation remains the only treatment able to rescue the patient’s life. Silk fibroin-based scaffolds may be used to increase cell affinity to biomaterials and may be chemically modified to improve cell adhesion. In the present study, porous, partially orientated and electrospun nanometric n…

Characterization and DNA-binding properties of GRF, a novel monomeric binding orphan receptor related to GCNF and betaFTZ-F1

1999

0014-2956 (Print) Comparative Study Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't; A PCR approach has been used to isolate, from Bombyx mori, a cDNA encoding a novel orphan receptor (GRF) that is most closely related to Bombyx betaFTZ-F1 and to the vertebrate germ cell nuclear factor. The major GRF mRNA is detected in most tissues as an 8-kb transcript whose amount follows the circulating ecdysteroid concentration with a delay. The expression pattern of GRF is similar to that of the Bombyx homologue of the Drosophila early-late gene DHR3, and precedes that of betaFTZ-F1 in all stages and tissues examined. The GRF protein is thus likely to be required in many tissues, but in a temporally …

Characterization of Urbain, a gene expressed during Bombyx mori imaginal wing discs morphogenesis

1995

Study of the aminopeptidase N gene family in the lepidopterans Ostrinia nubilalis (Hübner) and Bombyx mori (L.): Sequences, mapping and expression

2010

Aminopeptidases N (APNs) are a class of ectoenzymes present in lepidopteran larvae midguts, involved in the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxins mode of action. In the present work, seven aminopeptidases have been cloned from the midgut of Ostrinia nubilalis, the major Lepidopteran corn pest in the temperate climates. Six sequences were identified as APNs because of the presence of the HEXXH(X)18E and GAMEN motifs, as well as the signal peptide and the GPI-anchor sequences. The remaining sequence did not contain the two cellular targeting signals, indicating it belonged to the puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase (PSA) family. An in silico analysis allowed us to find orthologous sequences in Bo…

Nachweis von h�utungsaktiven Stoffen in isolierten Prothorakaldr�sen und Oenocyten beiBombyx mori w�hrend des 5. Larvenstadiums

1977

The content of moulting hormones has been determined in homogenates of isolated prothoracic glands and oenocytes during the 5th instar of the silkworm,Bombyx mori by means of the Calliphora bioassay. Prothoracic glands show variable activity in the production of moulting hormones, reaching a maximum near the end of the larval period. Comparable activities, but at higher levels, could be demonstrated in oenocytes. Controls with doubled quantities of tissue produced in a proportionate reaction in the bioassay. Fat bodies were inactive. Prothoracic glands and oenocytes incubated together resulted in a slower pupation index than would be expected from the sum of single determinations of oenocyt…

Isolation and characterization of Urbain, a 20-hydroxyecdysone-inducible gene expressed during morphogenesis of Bombyx mori wing imaginal discs.

1995

In insects, wing imaginal discs respond to the steroid hormone 20-hydroxyecdysone by initiating morphogenesis leading to the formation of the adult flight appendages. In this work we analyse the expression of a Bombyx gene, referred to as Urbain, whose cDNA had been previously isolated from wing discs (Chareyre et al. 1993). Accumulation of the 1.8 kb transcript occurs concomitantly with the increase of 20-hydroxyecdysone titer at every stage examined during post-embryonic development. In vitro, its accumulation is delayed 6–9 h after exposure to 20-hydroxyecdysone. Studies in the presence of cycloheximide have established that Urbain is a secondary response gene. The sequence of the mRNA c…

Bases de la resistencia a preparados bioinsecticidas basados en "Bacillus thuringiensis" en diferentes especies de insectos

2015

El empleo de insecticidas en la agricultura moderna resulta fundamental para obtener unos niveles óptimos de productividad. Actualmente se tiende al empleo de bioinsecticidas dados los efectos perniciosos de la mayor parte de los insecticidas convencionales. Los preparados bioinsecticidas basados en las proteínas cristalinas insecticidas (toxinas Cry) de “Bacillus thuringiensis” (Bt) son los de mayor venta del mercado y las plantas transgénicas protegidas por estas proteínas, están siendo cultivadas a escala mundial. La vida útil de este bioinsecticida podría verse limitada por la aparición de poblaciones de insectos resistentes si no se adoptan las medidas oportunas de manejo de resistenci…