DOI: 10.5061/dryad.b2rbnzsqk
title: Effects of a protease inhibitor protein on Buchnera aphidicola and gene expression in pea aphids (Acyrthosiphon pisum)

description: Aphids are serious insect pests for agricultural and horticultural crops
 and may cause major economic losses. Insecticides used to control aphids
 have caused environmental pollution and insecticide residues in
 agricultural products. A new protease inhibitor gene from bacterium
 Xenorhabdus bovienii (Xbpi-1) and the protease inhibitor protein expressed
 by the gene against the pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum Harris; Hemiptera:
 Aphididae) have been reported, however, effects of the PIP on the
 symbiotic bacteria, Buchnera aphidicola, and gene expression in pea aphids
 are unknown. By assessing the quantity of B. aphidicola, the primary
 symbiotic bacterium, in the aphid fed on an artificial diet containing 100
 and 500 μg/ml Xbpi-1, we observed a substantial reduction in its
 population by 27% and 46%, respectively, as analyzed by real-time
 quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR). Furthermore, the growth
 of other aphid-associated bacteria was also significantly inhibited by
 Xbpi-1. To elucidate the mechanisms at the gene level, we conducted
 transcriptome analysis and identified differentially expressed genes
 (DEGs). Subsequent Gene Ontology (GO) analysis of the 213 DEGs shed light
 on the impact of Xbpi-1 on aphid metabolism processes and gene expression.
 Notably, the results highlighted several aphid nutrient metabolism
 pathways affected by Xbpi-1, which are relevant to vector-borne diseases.
 These pathways encompass crucial factors such as heat shock proteins,
 cuticle proteins, and proteases. The results from this study revealed that
 the PIP had a novel mechanism against pea aphids by having adverse effects
 on the primary symbiotic bacteria in pea aphids and affecting aphid gene
 expression, showing that the PIP may be a promise bioinsecticide for aphid
 control in the future.
description: 1. Previous studies reported that <em>B.
 aphidicola</em> was related to aphid nutrition and important for
 aphid growth and survival (Muller et al., 2001; Nishikor et al., 2009).
 Therefore, the effects of the PIP on the quantity of <em>B.
 aphidicola</em> in pea aphids were further investigated by qRT-PCR
 analysis. The expression level of<em> the GROEL</em> gene was
 chosen to reflect the number of <em>B. aphidicola </em>as that
 of the previous report (Sakurai et al., 2005). Relative numbers of
 <em>B. aphidicola </em>in aphids fed on the artificial diet
 containing different concentrations of the PIP were calculated. The
 <em>GROEL</em> gene from <em>B. aphidicola
 </em>was used for this quantitative analysis. The primer sequences
 were as follows: <em>GROEL-F</em>
 (5'-CGTTTCAGATCCATTGGATTCA-3') and <em>GROEL-R</em>
 (5'-AGCTCAAATGGTAAAAGAAGTTGCA-3'). 2.
 Three-day-old aphids were placed in a glass tube with both ends closed by
 sealing film. Artificial feed was added into the sealing film at one end,
 and then the glass tube was placed in a light incubator for feeding. The
 aphids were fed on artificial feed for 3 days, and the mortality rate of
 aphids was calculated. There are two treatment groups in the experiment,
 which were artificial feed containing 100 µg/ml and 500 µg/ml Xbpi-1
 respectively. The control group used artificial feed with the same volume
 of PBS solution instead. 
description: # Effects of a protease inhibitor protein on *Buchnera aphidicola* and
 gene expression in pea aphids (*Acyrthosiphon pisum*)
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.b2rbnzsqk](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.b2rbnzsqk) ## Description of the data and file structure PIP = protease inhibitor protein Data files include: * protease inhibitor protein (PIP)_Mortality.txt * PIP_Relative_quantity_of_Buchnera_aphidicola.txt * biological_process.txt * cellular_component.txt * molecular_function.txt * CK.reads_mapped_stat.txt * PIP.reads_mapped_stat.txt * differential_Pvalue.gene.txt ### Files and variables #### File: PIP\_Relative\_quantity\_of\_Buchnera\_aphidicola.txt **Description:** Shows the relative quantity of *Buchnera aphidicola* (%) ##### Variables *  0 μg/ml PIP, 100 μg/ml PIP, 500 μg/ml PIP. ### File: PIP\_Mortality.txt **Description:** Shows aphid mortality. ##### Variables *  0 μg/ml PIP, 100 μg/ml PIP, 500 μg/ml PIP. ### File: biological\_process.txt, cellular\_component.txt, molecular\_function.txt **Description:** The analysis of GO assignments of DEGs. ##### Variables *  The transcripts were assigned to biological processes, cellular components, and molecular functions. ### File: CK.reads\_mapped\_stat.txt, PIP.reads\_mapped\_stat.txt **Description:** The analysis of sequencing and sequence alignment. ##### Variables *  Of these reads, 98.22% and 98.19% were mapped to the exon regions, respectively. ### File: differential\_Pvalue.gene.txt **Description:** Differential Gene Expression. ##### Variables *  The differentially expressed genes were analyzed. ## Code/software NA ## Access information NA