Unveiling crosstalk regulations within the polyamine pathway and between polyamine and purine pathways in Aedes aegypti females
8 affiliations
- 1Department of Entomology, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA
- 2Department of Pathology and Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
- 3Department of Pathology, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
- 4Microbiome Center - Texas Children’s Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
- 5Department of Pharmacy Practice and Translational Research, College of Pharmacy, University of Houston, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
- 6Helix Chromatography, Prospect Heights, IL, 60070, USA
- 7Department of Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease, Vector-Borne Infectious Disease Research Center, Celia Scott Weatherhead School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, 70112, USA
- 8Bruker Spatial Genomics, Inc., San Jose, CA, 95134, USA
Abstract
We previously demonstrated that ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) deficiency critically impairs nitrogen metabolism and survival in Aedes aegypti. To further examine the role of the polyamine pathway in Ae. aegypti nitrogen metabolism, we evaluated the expression of three additional genes encoding proteins involved in the biosynthetic pathway: S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase, spermidine synthase (SdS), spermine synthase (SmS), and seven genes encoding proteins involved in the catabolic pathway in fat body, midgut and Malpighian tubules by qPCR. Distinct transcriptional profiles were observed in mosquito tissues during the first gonotrophic cycle. SdS and SmS showed a differential protein expression pattern in fat body of sugar- and blood-fed mosquitoes. Genetic silencing of SdS, SmS or SdS and SmS by RNA interference (RNAi) decreased female survival. Mosquitoes with SdS or SmS deficiency exhibited a reduction of 5G1 trypsin level in the midgut at 24 h post-blood meal (PBM) , a delay in blood digestion, and a decrease in uric acid concentration in the excreta at 48 h PBM. RNAi-mediated SdS knockdown also caused a decrease in SmS protein level and vice-versa, RNAi-driven SmS deficiency resulted in a decrease in SdS protein abundance. Notably, ODC knockdown reduced SdS, SmS, xanthine dehydrogenase-1 protein levels, and decreased specific metabolite concentrations in fat body at 24 h PBM. In addition, RNAi-mediated ODC, SdS and SmS knockdown impacted transcript levels of genes involved in polyamine and purine pathways in fat body at 24 h PBM. Our findings uncover unique crosstalk regulations within the polyamine pathway and between polyamine and purine pathways.
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BibTeX
@article{isoe2026unveiling,
title = {{Unveiling crosstalk regulations within the polyamine pathway and between polyamine and purine pathways in Aedes aegypti females}},
author = {Jun Isoe and Thomas D. Horvath and Vlad Orlovsky and Paula Castillo Bravo and Stacy Mazzalupo and Patricia Y. Scaraffia},
journal = {Insect biochemistry and molecular biology},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1016/j.ibmb.2026.104667},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibmb.2026.104667},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Unveiling crosstalk regulations within the polyamine pathway and between polyamine and purine pathways in Aedes aegypti females
AU - Jun Isoe
AU - Thomas D. Horvath
AU - Vlad Orlovsky
AU - Paula Castillo Bravo
AU - Stacy Mazzalupo
AU - Patricia Y. Scaraffia
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/28
JO - Insect biochemistry and molecular biology
DO - 10.1016/j.ibmb.2026.104667
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibmb.2026.104667
AB - We previously demonstrated that ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) deficiency critically impairs nitrogen metabolism and survival in Aedes aegypti. To further examine the role of the polyamine pathway in Ae. aegypti nitrogen metabolism, we evaluated the expression of three additional genes encoding proteins involved in the biosynthetic pathway: S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase, spermidine synthase (SdS), spermine synthase (SmS), and seven genes encoding proteins involved in the catabolic pathway in fat body, midgut and Malpighian tubules by qPCR. Distinct transcriptional profiles were observed in mosquito tissues during the first gonotrophic cycle. SdS and SmS showed a differential protein expression pattern in fat body of sugar- and blood-fed mosquitoes. Genetic silencing of SdS, SmS or SdS and SmS by RNA interference (RNAi) decreased female survival. Mosquitoes with SdS or SmS deficiency exhibited a reduction of 5G1 trypsin level in the midgut at 24 h post-blood meal (PBM) , a delay in blood digestion, and a decrease in uric acid concentration in the excreta at 48 h PBM. RNAi-mediated SdS knockdown also caused a decrease in SmS protein level and vice-versa, RNAi-driven SmS deficiency resulted in a decrease in SdS protein abundance. Notably, ODC knockdown reduced SdS, SmS, xanthine dehydrogenase-1 protein levels, and decreased specific metabolite concentrations in fat body at 24 h PBM. In addition, RNAi-mediated ODC, SdS and SmS knockdown impacted transcript levels of genes involved in polyamine and purine pathways in fat body at 24 h PBM. Our findings uncover unique crosstalk regulations within the polyamine pathway and between polyamine and purine pathways.
SN - 0965-1748
SN - 1879-0240
ER -