CRISPR/Cas9-Based Functional Characterization of SfUGT50A15 Reveals Its Roles in the Resistance of Spodoptera frugiperda to Chlorantraniliprole, Emamectin Benzoate, and Benzoxazinoids

• Published in: Insects (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2024-04, Vol.15 (5), p.314
• Main Authors: Shi, Zhan, Luo, Mei, Yuan, Jinxi, Gao, Bin, Yang, Minghuan, Wang, Guirong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Benzoates; Benzoic acid; Benzoxazines; benzoxazinoids; Bioassays; Cloning; CRISPR; CRISPR-Cas systems; CRISPR/Cas9; Design; Detoxification; Eggs; Endosymbionts; Enzymes; Genes; Genomes; Glucose; Glycosylation; Humidity; Insecticide resistance; Insecticides; Insects; Lipophilic; lipophilicity; Mutation; Pest control; Pest resistance; Pesticides; Pests; Phytotoxins; Proteins; Sensitivity; Sorghum; Spodoptera frugiperda; Spodoptera frugiperda; superfamily; Uridine; Xenobiotics
• ISSN: 2075-4450; 2075-4450
• DOI: 10.3390/insects15050314

UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGTs) are a diverse superfamily of enzymes. Insects utilize uridine diphosphate-glucose (UDP-glucose) as a glycosyl donor for glycosylation in vivo, involved in the glycosylation of lipophilic endosymbionts and xenobiotics, including phytotoxins. UGTs act as second-stage detoxification metabolizing enzymes, which are essential for the detoxification metabolism of insecticides and benzoxazine compounds. However, the UGT genes responsible for specific glycosylation functions in are unclear at present. In this study, we utilized CRISPR/Cas9 to produce a strain to explore its possible function in governing sensitivity to chemical insecticides or benzoxazinoids. The bioassay results suggested that the strain was significantly more sensitive to chlorantraniliprole, emamectin benzoate, and benzoxazinoids than the wild-type strains. This finding suggests that the overexpression of the gene may be linked to resistance to pesticides (chlorantraniliprole and emamectin benzoate) as well as benzoxazinoids (BXDs).