Transcriptome Analysis of the Triatoma infestans (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) Integument

MORICONI, DÉBORA E.; DULBECCO, ANDREA B.; JUÁREZ M PATRICIA; CALDERÓN FERNÁNDEZ GUSTAVO M

Buenos Aires

Congreso; II Reunión conjunta de Sociedades de Biociencias.; 2017

Sociedad de Biociencias

The insect integument, formed by the cuticle and the underlyingepidermis, is essential to insect fitness, regulating lipid biosynthesisand storage, insect growth and development. Its participation in insecticide resistance was recently shown in Triatoma infestans; oneof the major vectors of Chagas disease in South America. Cuticlethickening together with larger amounts of cuticular hydrocarbonscontribute to the cuticular resistance factor in insecticide resistantpopulations,however, genomic data is scarce. In this study, we performed a transcriptome analysis of the nymph integument in order toidentify the genes expressed and their potential role. More than 10%of the transcripts encoded proteins putatively involved in the metabolism of fatty acids and related components (fatty acid synthases,elongases, desaturases, fatty alcohol reductases), structural integument proteins, and components of the insecticide detoxification system (cytochrome P450s, esterases and glutathione transferases).Present work showed a differential expression pattern of severalgenes related to cuticle lipid biosynthesis, cuticle formation and insecticide detoxification in pyrethroid-resistant insects. These resultssuggest that the overexpression of some integument genes maycontribute to insecticide resistance in T. infestans through mechanisms not only involving a delayed penetration through the cuticle,but also an increased detoxification of the insecticide. The functionof relevant genes potentially involved in insecticide resistance wasstudied by RNA interference. This is the first transcriptome analysisof a triatomine integument, and together with prior biochemical information, will help further understand the integument role in a widearray of mechanisms.Keywords: Triatoma infestans, transcriptome, integument, cuticlelipid metabolism, insecticide resistance.