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Bombyx mori cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus (BmCPV) is a major pathogen of the economic insect silkworm, Bombyx mori. Virus-encoded microRNAs (miRNAs) have been proven to play important roles in host-pathogen interactions. In this study we identified a BmCPV-derived miRNA-like 21 nt small RNA, BmCPV-miR-1, from the small RNA deep sequencing of BmCPV-infected silkworm larvae by stem-loop quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) and investigated its functions with qPCR and lentiviral expression systems. Bombyx mori inhibitor of apoptosis protein (BmIAP) gene was predicted by both target prediction software miRanda and Targetscan to be one of its target genes with a binding site for BmCPV-miR-1 at the 5' untranslated region. It was found that the expression of BmCPV-miR-1 and its target gene BmIAP were both up-regulated in BmCPV-infected larvae. At the same time, it was confirmed that BmCPV-miR-1 could up-regulate the expression of BmIAP gene in HEK293T cells with lentiviral expression systems and in BmN cells by transfecting mimics. Furthermore, BmCPV-miR-1 mimics could up-regulate the expression level of BmIAP gene in midgut and fat body in the silkworm. In the midgut of BmCPV-infected larvae, BmCPV-miR-1 mimics could be further up-regulated and inhibitors could lower the virus-mediated expression of BmIAP gene. With the viral genomic RNA segments S1 and S10 as indicators, BmCPV-miR-1 mimics could up-regulate and inhibitors down-regulate their replication in the infected silkworm. These results implied that BmCPV-miR-1 could inhibit cell apoptosis in the infected silkworm through up-regulating BmIAP expression, providing the virus with a better cell circumstance for its replication.

Bombyx mori cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus (BmCPV) is one of the major viral pathogens in silkworm. Its infection often results in significant losses to sericulture. Studies have demonstrated that RNAi is one of the important anti-viral mechanisms in organisms. In this study, three dsRNAs targeting the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RDRP) gene of BmCPV were designed and synthesized with 2'-F modification to explore their interference effects on BmCPV replication in silkworm larvae. The results showed that injecting dsRNA in the dosage of 4-6 ng per mg body weight into the 5th instar larvae can interfere with the BmCPV-RDRP expression by 93% after virus infection and by 99.9% before virus infection. In addition, the expression of two viral structural protein genes (genome RNA segments 1 and 5) was also decreased with the decrease of RDRP expression, suggesting that RNAi interference of BmCPV-RDRP expression could affect viral replication. The study provides an effective method for investigating virus replication as well as the virus-host interactions in the silkworm larvae using dsRNA.

Viral microRNAs (miRNAs) have been demonstrated to play important roles in virus-host interactions. Some RNA virus-encoded miRNAs have been reported to promote viral replication and may be used as potential drug targets. Bombyx mori cypovirus (BmCPV), an important pathogen of silkworm, is a double-stranded RNA virus frequently causing serious damages in sericulture. Research on miRNA encoded by BmCPV may be useful to elucidate the BmCPV-host interaction and to develop new anti-viral methods. In our previous study, small RNA libraries of the midgut of BmCPV-infected silkworm have been generated by deep sequencing and several BmCPV-encoded putative miRNAs were predicted. In this study, two putative miRNAs encoded by BmCPV were identified and then validated by stem-loop qRT-PCR and northern blot. They are BmCPV-miR-3 encoded by the third genomic RNA segment of BmCPV (478-497bp) and BmCPV-miR-5 encoded by the fifth genomic RNA segment (2481-2500bp), both are 20bp and encoded by ORF regions. miRNA expression could be detected as early as 5h after BmCPV infection, and the expression level of BmCPV-miR-3 is much higher than that of BmCPV-miR-5 in the course of infection. Three potential target genes were predicted in the host genome, two for BmCPV-miR-3 and one for BmCPV-miR-5, but just one in the virus genome for BmCPV-miR-3 only, with the binding sites all in coding regions. Dual luciferase assay and qRT-PCR indicated that BmCPV-miR-3 could down-regulate the expression of both its two target genes, but no regulatory effect by BmCPV-miR-5 on its target gene was detected. In contrast, BmCPV-miR-3 could up-regulate the viral target. This is the first report that an insect double stranded RNA virus may generate miRNAs and the results obtained will benefit the future study of the functions of BmCPV-encoded miRNAs on viral replication and virus-host interaction.

Hepatopancreas necrosis disease (HPND) is a disease and serious impacts on the industry of Chinese mitten crabs (Eriocheir sinensis) culture, however the actual cause of this disease is still not known. In the present study, to explore the pathogenic changes and risk factors caused by HPND, ultrathin sections of different tissues from the diseased crabs were observed with transmission electron microscope. The hepatopancreatic cells, spermatogonium, gill tissues and muscle cells of the diseased crabs showed severe structural and morphological changes. To further investigate whether HPND was caused by pathogenic microorganism, the healthy crabs were fed/injected with diseased tissues, the symptoms of HPND were not found, suggesting that HPND was not caused by virus or microsporidian infections. In addition, the toxic effect of avermectin and high pH water were also examined in this study. 40% (p

Proteomic profiles from the wing discs of silkworms at the larval, pupal, and adult moth stages were determined using shotgun proteomics and MS sequencing. We identified 241, 218, and 223 proteins from the larval, pupal, and adult moth stages, respectively, of which 139 were shared by all three stages. In addition, there were 55, 37, and 43 specific proteins identified at the larval, pupal, and adult moth stages, respectively. More metabolic enzymes were identified among the specific proteins expressed in the wing disc of larvae compared with pupae and moths. The identification of FKBP45 and the chitinase-like protein EN03 as two proteins solely expressed at the larval stage indicate these two proteins may be involved in the immunological functions of larvae. The myosin heavy chain was identified in the pupal wing disc, suggesting its involvement in the formation of wing muscle. Some proteins, such as proteasome alpha 3 subunits and ribosomal proteins, specifically identified from the moth stage may be involved in the degradation of old cuticle proteins and new cuticle protein synthesis. Gene ontology analysis of proteins specific to each of these three stages enabled their association with cellular component, molecular function, and biological process categories. The analysis of similarities and differences in these identified proteins will greatly further our understanding of wing disc development in silkworm and other insects.

A novel Bombyx mori cypovirus 1 isolated from infected silkworm larvae and tentatively assigned as Bombyx mori cypovirus 1 isolate Suzhou (BmCPV-SZ). The complete nucleotide sequences of genomic segments S1–S10 from BmCPV-SZ were determined. All segments possessed a single open reading frame; however, bioinformatic evidence suggested a short overlapping coding sequence in S1. Each BmCPV-SZ segment possessed the conserved terminal sequences AGUAA and GUUAGCC at the 5′ and 3′ ends, respectively. The conserved A/G at the –3 position in relation to the AUG codon could be found in the BmCPV-SZ genome, and it was postulated that this conserved A/G may be the most important nucleotide for efficient translation initiation in cypoviruses (CPVs). Examination of the putative amino acid sequences encoded by BmCPV-SZ revealed some characteristic motifs. Homology searches showed that viral structural proteins VP1, VP3, and VP4 had localized homologies with proteins of Rice ragged stunt virus , a member of the genus Oryzavirus within the family Reoviridae. A phylogenetic tree based on RNA-dependent RNA polymerase sequences demonstrated that CPV is more closely related to Rice ragged stunt virus and Aedes pseudoscutellaris reovirus than to other members of Reoviridae, suggesting that they may have originated from common ancestors.

To evaluate the biological activity of the posterior silk glands of transgenic silkworms expressing human insulin- like growth factor I (hIGF-I), we bred hIGF-I-transgenic silkworms through eight generations by continuously selecting with green fluorescence and G418. The G8 transgenic silkworms were confirmed by polymerase chain reaction and dot blotting, and their posterior silk glands were removed from the fifth instar larvae to make freeze-dried powders. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay results showed that the expression level of hIGF-I in the posterior silk glands of G8 transgenic silkworm is approximately 493 ng/g of freeze-dried powder. When the freeze-dried powder was administrated by gavage to diabetes mellitus (DM) mice, the blood glucose in DM mice significantly decreased (P < 0.05) in a time- and dose-dependent manner compared with that of DM mice orally administrated with distilled water and normal freeze-dried powders made of untreated silk glands. These results demonstrated that hIGF-I expressed in posterior silk glands of transgenic silkworms could reduce blood glucose by oral administration.

In the past few decades, the mouse has been used as a mammalian model for hyperuricemia and gout, which has increased not only in prevalence, but also in clinical complexity, accentuated in part by a dearth of novel advances in treatments for hyperuricemia and gouty arthritis. However, the use of mice for the development of gouty therapeutic drugs creates a number of problems. Thus, identification and evaluation of the therapeutic effects of chemicals in an alternative animal model is desirable. In the present study, the effects of gouty therapeutic drugs on lowering the content of uric acid and inhibiting activity of xanthine oxidase were evaluated by using a silkworm model, Bombyx mori L. (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae). The results showed that the effectiveness of oral administration of various gouty therapeutic drugs to 5th instar silkworms is consistent with results for human. The activity of xanthine oxidase of silkworm treated with allopurinol was lower, and declined in a dose-dependent manner compared with control silkworms, while sodium bicarbonate failed at inhibiting the activity of xanthine oxidase. The concentration of uric acid in the both hemolymph and fat body declined by 90 and 95% at six days post-administration with 25 mg/mL of allopurinol, respectively (p < 0.01), while the concentration of uric acid in both the hemolymph and fat body also declined by 81 and 95% at six days post-administration with 25 mg/mL of sodium bicarbonate, respectively (p < 0.01). Moreover, the epidermis of silkworm treated with allopurinol or sodium bicarbonate became transparent compared with the negative control group. These results suggest that silkworm larva can be used as an animal model for screening and evaluation of gouty therapeutic drugs.

This study investigated the effects of gain of ecdysteroid UDP-glucosyltransferase (EGT) gene function mutation on the development of the silkworm, Bombyx mori. A novel piggyBac-derived plasmid containing the egt gene from B. mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) driven by a heat-shock protein (hsp) 23.7 promoter, with a neomycin-resistance gene (neo) controlled by the BmNPV ie-1 promoter and a green fluorescent protein gene (gfp) under the control of the B. mori actin 3 (A3) promoter was constructed. The vector was transferred into silkworm eggs by sperm-mediated gene transfer. Transgenic silkworms were produced after screening for neo and gfp genes and gene transfer was verified by polymerase chain reaction, dot-blot hybridization and western blotting. The hatching rate of G1 generation silkworm eggs was about 60% lower than that of normal silkworm eggs. The duration of the G1 generation larval period was extended, and the G2 generation pupal stage lasted four days longer than that in non-transgenic silkworms. The ecdysone blood level in G2 silkworms in the third instar molting stage was reduced by up to 90%. These results show that EGT suppressed transgenic silkworm molting, and that egt expression in egt-transgenic silkworms resulted in arrest of metamorphosis from pupae to moths.

To explore whether the nonvirus encoded protein could be embedded into Bombyx mori cypovirus (BmCPV) polyhedra. The stable transformants of BmN cells expressing a polyhedrin (Polh) gene of BmCPV were constructed by transfection with a non-transposon derived vector containing a polh gene. The polyhedra were purified from the midguts of BmCPV-infected silkworms and the transformed BmN cells, respectively. The proteins embedded into polyhedra were determined by mass spectrometry analysis. Host derived proteins were detected in the purified polyhedra. Analysis of structure and hydrophilicity of embedded proteins indicated that the hydrophilic proteins, in structure, were similar to the left-handed structure of polyhedrin or the N-terminal domain of BmCPV structural protein VP3, which were easily embedded into the BmCPV polyhedra. The lysate of polyhedra purified from the infected transformation of BmN cells with modified B. mori baculovirus BmPAK6 could infect BmN cells, indicating that B. mori baculovirus could be embedded into BmCPV polyhedra. Both the purified polyhedra and its lysate could be coloured by X-gal, indicating that the β-galactosidase expressed by BmPAK6 could be incorporated into BmCPV polyhedra. These results suggested that some heterologous proteins and baculovirus could be embedded into polyhedra in an unknown manner.

To realize the secretory expression of human insulin-like growth factor-I (hIGF-I) in the posterior silk glands (PSGs) of transgenic silkworms, the piggyBac transposon vector pigA3GFP-fibHS-hIGF-i.e.-neo containing a neomycin-resistance gene ( neo ), green fluorescent protein gene ( gfp ) and human insulin-like growth factor I ( hIGF -I) gene controlled by the Bombyx mori fibroin heavy chain gene ( fib -H) promoter with its downstream signal peptide sequence, and a helper plasmid containing the piggyBac transposase sequence under the control of the B. mori actin 3 gene ( A 3) promoter were transferred into silkworm eggs by sperm-mediated gene transfer. Transformed silkworms were obtained after being screened for green fluorescence and by the antibiotic G418. In the PSGs of the transformed silkworms, a specific band representing hIGF-I could be detected by Western blotting, and the content of the hIGF-I estimated by ELISA was approximately 1.84 μg/gram of cocoon and 19.18 μg/gram of freeze-dried PSG powder. To further estimate the biological activity of the expressed hIGF-I, streptozotocin-induced TIDM mice were orally administered with the PSG powder of the transgenic silkworms, the results showed the blood glucose levels of mice were significantly reduced, suggesting that the the PSGs powder of transgenic hIGF -I silkworms could possibly be used as a perorally administered medicine.

For mass production of urease B subunit (UreB) and heat shock protein A subunit (HspA) of Helicobacter pylori with Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV) baculovirus expression system (BES) and to determine whether they could be used as an oral vaccine against H. pylori, besides, to determine the time course of expressed recombinant protein and the optimum acquisition time directly through green fluorescence, HspA and enhanced green fluorescence protein (EGFP) genes were cloned into vector pFastBacDual to form donor vector pFastBacDual-(EGFP) (HspA), UreB gene was cloned into vector pFastBacDual to form donor vector pFastBacDual-UreB,then they were transformed into E. coli BmDH10Bac to obtain the recombinant Bacmid-(EGFP) (HspA) and Bacmid-UreB respectively. They were used to transfect BmN cells and generated the recombinant baculovirus BmNPV-(EGFP) (HspA) and BmNPV-UreB. Using these recombinant baculovirus BmNPV-(EGFP) (HspA) and BmNPV-UreB inoculated the silkworm pupae, a recombinant HspA and UreB protein were expressed in silkworm pupae, which were around 13 and 62 kDa in sodium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and western blot analysis. After oral immunization of mice, serum specific IgG antibodies against HspA and UreB in vaccine group were much higher than that in mock and native silkworm powder control groups. The results indicated that the expressed recombinant HspA and UreB in silkworm pupae would possess good immunogenicity. In addition, when EGFP and HspA proteins were expressed, a direct correlation between the increase in intensity of fluorescence and HspA concentration.