SIGNALING AND FUNCTION OF INSULIN-LIKE PEPTIDES IN INSECTS

• Published in: Annual review of entomology Vol. 51; pp. 1 - 24
• Main Authors: Wu, Q, Brown, M.R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.01.2006
• Subjects: Animals; Diptera - physiology; Drosophila melanogaster; Drosophila melanogaster - growth & development; Drosophila melanogaster - physiology; hormonal regulation; Humans; insect aging; insect growth; insect models; insect physiology; Insect Proteins - physiology; insect reproduction; Insecta - physiology; insects; Insulin - analogs & derivatives; Insulin - isolation & purification; Insulin - physiology; insulin-like effect; Invertebrates - physiology; Lepidoptera - physiology; literature reviews; Longevity - physiology; metabolism; Orthoptera - physiology; peptide hormones; Receptor, Insulin - physiology; Reproduction - physiology; senescence; Signal Transduction; Somatomedins - physiology
• ISSN: 0066-4170; 1545-4487
• DOI: 10.1146/annurev.ento.51.110104.151011

Insulin-like peptides (ILPs) exist in insects and are encoded by multigene families that are expressed in the brain and other tissues. Upon secretion, these peptides likely serve as hormones, neurotransmitters, and growth factors, but to date, few direct functions have been demonstrated. In Drosophila melanogaster, molecular genetic studies have revealed elements of a conserved insulin signaling pathway, and as in other animal models, it appears to play a key role in metabolism, growth, reproduction, and aging. This review offers (a) an integrated summary of the efforts to characterize the distribution of ILPs in insects and to define this pathway and its functions in Drosophila and (b) a few considerations for future studies of ILP endocrinology in insects.