Juvenile hormone induces reproduction via miR-1175-3p in the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta

作     者：Jie Chen Ziying Guan Yunjie Ma Qingxing Shi Ting Chen Muhammad Irfan WarisLihua Lyu Lihua Lyu Yongyue Lu Guojun Qi 

作者机构：Institute of Plant ProtectionGuangdong Academy of Agricultural SciencesKey Laboratory of Green Prevention and Control on Fruits and Vegetables in South China Ministry of Agriculture and Rural AffairsGuangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of High Technology for Plant ProtectionGuangzhouChina Department of EntomologyCollege of Plant ProtectionSouth China Agricultural UniversityGuangzhouChina 

出 版 物：《Insect Science》 (昆虫科学（英文版）)

年 卷 期：2024年第31卷第2期

页      面：371-386页

核心收录：

学科分类：0710[理学-生物学] 07[理学] 

基　　金：National Key R&D Program of China(2021YFD1000500) the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province(2023A1515012108) the Foundation of Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences(R2023PY-JX010). 

主　　题：juvenile hormone miR-1175-3p red imported fire ant reproduction social insects vitellogenin 

摘      要：Juvenile hormone(JH)acts in the regulation of caste differentiation between queens and workers(i.e.,with or without reproductive capacity)during vitellin synthesis and oogenesis in social insects.However,the regulatory mechanisms have not yet been elucidated.Here,we identified a highly expressed microRNA(miRNA),miR-1175-3p,in the red imported fire ant,Solenopsis invicta.We found that miR-1175-3p is prominently present in the fat bodies and ovaries of workers.Furthermore,miR-1175-3p interacts with its target gene,broad-complex core(Br-C),in the fat bodies.By utilizing miR-1175-3p agomir,we successfully suppressed the expression of the Br-C protein in queens,resulting in reduced vitellogenin expression,fewer eggs,and poorly developed ovaries.Conversely,decreasing miR-1175-3p levels led to the increased expression of Br-C and vitellogenin in workers,triggering the“re-developmentof the ovaries.Moreover,when queens were fed with JH,the expression of miR-1175-3p decreased,whereas the expression of vitellogenin-2 and vitellogenin-3 increased.Notably,the suppression of fertility in queens caused by treatment with agomir miR-1175-3p was completely rescued by the increased vitellogenin expression induced by being fed with JH.These results suggest the critical role of miR-1175-3p in JH-regulated reproduction,shedding light on the molecular mechanism underlying miRNA-mediated fecundity in social insects and providing a novel strategy for managing S.invicta.