Probing Transcriptional Crosstalk between ICryptochromes/I and IIron-sulfur Cluster Assembly 1/I in the Magnetoresponse of a Migratory Insect

Many organisms can sense and respond to magnetic fields (MFs), with migratory species in particular utilizing geomagnetic field information for long-distance migration. Cryptochrome proteins (Crys) along with a highly conserved Iron-sulfur cluster assembly protein (i.e., MagR) have garnered signific...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inInternational journal of molecular sciences Vol. 24; no. 13
Main Authors Zhang, Yuning, Zhang, Ying, Zhao, Jingyu, He, Jinglan, Xuanyuan, Zongjin, Pan, Weidong, Sword, Gregory A, Chen, Fajun, Wan, Guijun
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published MDPI AG 01.07.2023
Subjects
Analysis
Genetic aspects
Genetic transcription
Investigations
Iron compounds
Magnetic fields
Proteins
Scientific equipment and supplies industry
Sulfur
Sulfur compounds
United States
Massachusetts
China
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Summary:Many organisms can sense and respond to magnetic fields (MFs), with migratory species in particular utilizing geomagnetic field information for long-distance migration. Cryptochrome proteins (Crys) along with a highly conserved Iron-sulfur cluster assembly protein (i.e., MagR) have garnered significant attention for their involvement in magnetoresponse (including magnetoreception). However, in vivo investigations of potential transcriptional crosstalk between Crys and MagR genes have been limited. The brown planthopper, Nilaparvata lugens, is a major migratory pest insect and an emerging model for studying MF intensity-related magnetoresponse. Here, we explored in vivo transcriptional crosstalk between Crys (Cry1 and Cry2) and MagR in N. lugens. The expression of Crys and MagR were found to be sensitive to MF intensity changes as small as several micro-teslas. Knocking down MagR expression led to a significant downregulation of Cry1, but not Cry2. The knockdown of either Cry1 or Cry2 individually did not significantly affect MagR expression. However, their double knockdown resulted in significant upregulation of MagR. Our findings clearly indicate transcriptional crosstalk between MagR and Crys known to be involved in magnetoresponse. This work advances the understanding of magnetoresponse signaling and represents a key initial step towards elucidating the functional consequences of these novel in vivo interactions.
ISSN:1422-0067
1422-0067
DOI:10.3390/ijms241311101