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Gary W Felton - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • characterization of a salivary lysozyme in larval Helicoverpa zea
    Journal of Chemical Ecology, 2004
    Co-Authors: Diana Coxfoster, Gary W Felton
    Abstract:

    The cDNA sequence of a salivary lysozyme in Helicoverpa zea (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) was determined. The full-length cDNA is 1,032 bp, and it encodes a protein of 142 amino acids. This lysozyme has 90% identity with Heliothis virescens lysozyme and 76% identity with Manduca sexta lysozyme. There is a signal peptide of 20 amino acids at the N-terminus. The mature protein is about 14.4 kDa without the signal peptide. The pI value is greater than 9.5 as determined by isoelectric focusing. From genomic DNA, two introns and three exons were within the open reading frame (ORF). Southern blot analysis indicated that it is a single-copy gene. A time-course study revealed that the H. zea lysozyme gene was differentially expressed in the labial glands during the development of fifth-instar larvae, with the peak level of lysozyme mRNA being detected on day 1. Dot blot analysis showed different levels of H. zea lysozyme expression when the caterpillars fed on different plants. Further, the H. zea lysozyme could be detected with antibodies raised against the M. sexta lysozyme, and it was one of the most abundant secreted proteins in saliva collected directly from the caterpillar’s spinneret. The potential role of the lysozyme on host plants in mediating susceptibility to bacterial disease is discussed in the context of tritrophic interactions.

  • Sequestration of host plant carotenoids in the larval tissues of Helicoverpa zea.
    Journal of Insect Physiology, 2002
    Co-Authors: Herbert Eichenseer, J B Murphy, Gary W Felton
    Abstract:

    To determine the cause of the unique yellow coloration in mandibular glands of soybean-fed Helicoverpa zea larvae, the accumulation of carotenoids in various tissues of last instar larvae fed soybean, cotton and tomato foliage was quantified. Five carotenoids were detected in the foliage of all host plants but at significantly different concentrations. Xanthophylls rather than carotenes were most likely to accumulate in larval tissues. Carotenoids accumulated at different rates and some were significantly affected by larval diet. Highest levels of carotenoid accumulation, notably lutein, were detected in the testes, followed by midgut epithelium, fat body and integument. The midgut epithelium contained the greatest and the testes the least diversity of carotenoid types. Low levels of lutein were detected in both labial and mandibular glands. Tomato foliage had the highest carotenoid content and caterpillar tissues fed these leaves often had the highest amounts of carotenoid. However, the accumulation of carotenoids did not protect larvae from antibiotic effects of tomato foliage because these caterpillars had the highest mortality and slowest growth rates of all the three host plants. Transport and absorption of lipid and oxidative stress may be some reasons for differential carotenoid accumulation.

  • salivary glucose oxidase multifunctional roles for Helicoverpa zea
    Archives of Insect Biochemistry and Physiology, 1999
    Co-Authors: Herbert Eichenseer, Claravon M Mathews, Jian L Bi, Brad J Murphy, Gary W Felton
    Abstract:

    Labial glands of Helicoverpa zea produced a glucose oxidase (GOX), which was present in the saliva and midgut lumen. We purified GOX 23-fold by isoelectric focusing of labial gland homogenates and investigated physical and kinetic properties of the enzyme. D-glucose and 6-deoxy-D-glucose were the optimal substrates of 22 carbohydrates tested with GOX. The enzyme was not inhibited by several inhibitors of fungal GOX but was sensitive to HgCl2. Labial gland GOX activities varied daily during larval development with highest activities found when larvae were actively feeding. Based on pH optimum, pI, molecular weight estimate and Km(glucose), the insect enzyme is not derived from fungal GOXs but appears to have similar kinetic and physical attributes to other insect GOXs. Some possible functions are discussed, including antimicrobial properties, manipulating midgut O2 levels, altering host plant defense responses, and metabolizing carbohydrates. Arch. Insect Biochem. Physiol. 42:99n109, 1999. ' 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  • Does salicylic acid act as a signal in cotton for induced resistance to Helicoverpa zea
    Journal of Chemical Ecology, 1997
    Co-Authors: J L Bi, J B Murphy, Gary W Felton
    Abstract:

    Our previous study indicated that insect herbivory on cotton induced resistance to the cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa zea). Here we examine the role of salicylic acid as a signal in cotton for the induced resistance. Abundant evidence has accumulated showing that salicylic acid plays a key role in coordinating the expression of systemic acquired resistance against phyto-pathogens. We report that herbivory results in significant increases in foliar salicylic acid and H2O2, a response frequently observed following pathogenesis. In other well-studied systems (e.g., tobacco), salicylic acid inhibits the enzymatic decomposition of H2O2 by catalase and ascorbate peroxidase, but in cotton, salicylic acid has no effect on these enzymes in vitro. Furthermore, while herbivory enhances foliar catalase and ascorbate peroxidase activities, the application of salicylic acid or methyl salicylate to cotton plants does not affect foliar resistance to H. zea. The possible role of salicylic acid as a signal for induced resistance is discussed in light of these findings.

  • antinutritive and oxidative components as mechanisms of induced resistance in cotton to Helicoverpa zea
    Journal of Chemical Ecology, 1997
    Co-Authors: J L Bi, J B Murphy, Gary W Felton
    Abstract:

    Induced resistance in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) foliage and squares to herbivory by Helicoverpa zea (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is reported in this study. Induced resistance was indicated by decreased larval growth when larvae fed on previously damaged foliage or squares compared to the controls. Herbivory caused a significant decline in host nutritional quality as shown by a reduction in protein and most amino acids in both foliage and squares. Peroxidase, ascorbate oxidase, and diamine oxidase activities increased in both damaged foliage and squares, whereas levels of the nutritional antioxidant, ascorbate, were depressed after larval feeding. Larval feeding also markedly enhanced lipoxygenase activity and lipid peroxides in square tissues. Moreover, feeding damage altered the quantitative levels of phenolic compounds in foliage and squares. These results indicate a significant shift in the oxidative status of cotton plants following herbivory as indicated by increased oxidative enzyme activity, decreased levels of the nutritional antioxidant ascorbate, and increased levels of phenolic prooxidants (i.e., chlorogenic acid) and lipid peroxides.

Ashok K. Raina - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • Structural organization of the sex pheromone gland in Helicoverpa zea in relation to pheromone production and release.
    Arthropod Structure & Development, 2020
    Co-Authors: Ashok K. Raina, William P. Wergin, Charles Murphy, Eric F. Erbe
    Abstract:

    Morphological location of the sex pheromone producing area in the ovipositor of the female corn earworm Helicoverpa zea, was correlated with gas chromatographic analysis of the extracted pheromone. Histological studies showed that the pheromone gland occupied an almost complete ring of specialized columnar cells between the 8th and 9th abdominal segments. Ultrastructure of the pheromone gland cells revealed distinct features such as microvilli, pockets of granular material, intercellular canals with abundant desmosomes. Apparent changes in some of these features are associated with phases of pheromone production and non-production. Examination of the tissue with low temperature scanning electron microscopy showed the presence of excreted droplets at the tips of cuticular hairs in the glandular area during the period of pheromone production.

  • A new gland associated with the retrocerebral complex of the adult corn earworm, Helicoverpa zea.
    Arthropod Structure & Development, 2008
    Co-Authors: Ashok K. Raina, Charles Murphy
    Abstract:

    We report the discovery of a single-celled putative new gland associated with the retrocerebral complex in the adults of Helicoverpa zea. The gland was not observed in Manduca sexta and few other species of moths. The pair of glands, each 50.6 ± 5.5 μm in diameter, is located on either side of the recurrent nerve. Each gland is connected on one end through a fine nerve to the nervus corporis cardiaci-3 (NCC-3) and at the opposite end to the corpora allata through a thin fiber. The gland is composed of a giant cell with a large nucleus. The cytoplasm has an abundance of mitochondria in addition to dense bodies, electron lucent spheres, concentric whorls of rough endoplasmic reticulum and few vacuoles. At this stage we have no idea as to the function of this new gland.

  • A pheromonotropic peptide of Helicoverpa zea, with melanizing activity, interaction with PBAN, and distribution of immunoreactivity.
    Archives of Insect Biochemistry and Physiology, 2003
    Co-Authors: Ashok K. Raina, Timothy G. Kingan, Jan Kochansky
    Abstract:

    The sequence of an 18–amino acid residue peptide was deduced from the gene encoding PBAN and other peptides with common C-termini in Helicoverpa zea. The peptide caused melanization in larvae and pheromone production in females of H. zea, and was designated pheromonotropic melanizing peptide (Hez-PMP). The peptide has a 83% sequence homology with a pheromonotropic peptide isolated from Pseudaletia separata. PMP caused melanization and mortality when injected into larvae just before molting. Whereas intense melanization was caused with a dose of 1,000 pmol, peak mortality occurred at 100 pmol, with 50% of larvae dying within 48 h after injection. Pheromonotropic activity of PMP was dose dependent. Co-injection of Hez-PMP and Hez-PBAN into a female resulted in suppression of the pheromonotropic effect of PBAN. Whole-mount immunocytochemical studies revealed PMP-like immunoreactivity in frontal ganglion, subesophageal, thoracic, and abdominal ganglia as well as the esophageal nerve. Arch. Insect Biochem. Physiol. 53:147–157, 2003. Published 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  • Antennal ampullary glands of Helicoverpa zea (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae).
    Cell and Tissue Research, 2003
    Co-Authors: Ashok K. Raina, Shirlee Meola, William P. Wergin, Michael B. Blackburn, Geetha Bali
    Abstract:

    In adult moths, the cephalic aorta terminates in an apical sack from which extends a pair of optic and antennal vessels that lie on either side of the esophagus, at the dorsoanterior surface of the brain. The base of each antennal vessel is dilated to form an ampulla that contains an oval mass of tissue, the antennal ampullary gland (AAG). An ultrastructural study revealed that the AAG of the corn earworm moth, Helicoverpa zea (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae), is composed of a single type of 40–50 parenchymal cells that produce secretory granules. The secretory material is released into the lymph channel of the ampullary vessel, suggesting that the AAG is an endocrine gland. Unlike the prothoracic gland and the corpus allatum, the AAG does not receive direct neural innervation; however, portions of the aortal muscle, associated with the ampullary wall, contain neurosecretory terminals and some of their products may also affect the AAG. No morphological differences were found between the AAG of males and females, with the exception that the glands in males were slightly larger. The function of the AAG remains unknown at this time. Because the AAG is located within the ampulla of the antennal vessel, one could assume that the product(s) of this gland may influence the response of the antennal sensory neurons to external stimuli.

  • Further characterization of the gonad-specific virus of corn earworm, Helicoverpa zea.
    Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, 2000
    Co-Authors: Ashok K. Raina, John P. Burand, Jean R. Adams, Blanca Lupiani, Dwight E. Lynn, Edward M. Dougherty
    Abstract:

    Abstract The gonad-specific virus (GSV) is a DNA virus infecting the reproductive tracts of adults of both sexes of the corn earworm, Helicoverpa zea, causing severe tissue deformities leading to sterility. Atypical occlusion bodies containing large concentrations of virions embedded in a granular matrix were seen in the lumen of the oviduct and the bursa copulatrix of infected females. The virus, transmitted by both sexes, was successfully propagated in vivo and in tissue culture. The GSV genome is about 225 kb in size, with no apparent similarity to the nucleopolyhedrovirus type species, AcMNPV, genomic DNA, as determined by Southern hybridization. PCR amplification of GSV genomic DNA with primers derived from the highly conserved polyhedra gene of several baculoviruses indicated no similarity. GSV at 10−2 female equivalents (based on virus obtained from the bursa copulatrix and oviducts of one infected female) injected into a newly emerged female and mated to a normal male resulted in >95% agonadal progeny. However, at lower doses, some of the adult progeny looked normal but apparently carried a low level of the virus that could be responsible for sustenance of infection in a given colony, as well as in nature.

Ryan E Jackson - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • peripheral genetic structure of Helicoverpa zea indicates asymmetrical panmixia
    Ecology and Evolution, 2016
    Co-Authors: Mathew Seymour, Omaththage P. Perera, Ryan E Jackson, Howard W Fescemyer, S J Fleischer, Craig A. Abel
    Abstract:

    Seasonal climatic shifts create peripheral habitats that alternate between habitable and uninhabitable for migratory species. Such dynamic peripheral habitats are potential sites where migratory species could evolve high genetic diversity resulting from convergence of immigrants from multiple regionally distant areas. Migrant populations of Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) captured during two different seasons were assessed for genetic structure using microsatellite markers and for host plant type using stable carbon isotope analysis. Individuals (N = 568) were genotyped and divided into 13 putative populations based on collection site and time. Fixation indices (F-statistics), analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA), and discriminant analysis of principal components (DAPC) were used to examine within and among population genetic variation. Mean number of alleles per locus was 10.25 (± 3.2 SD), and allelic richness ranged from 2.38 to 5.13 (± 3.2 SD). The observed and expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.07 to 0.48 and 0.08 to 0.62, respectively. Low F ST (0.01 to 0.02) and high F IS (0.08 to 0.33) values suggest captured migrants originated from breeding populations with different allele frequencies. We postulate that high genetic diversity within migrant populations and low genetic differentiation among migrant populations of H. zea are the result of asymmetrical immigration due to the high dispersal and reproductive behavior of H. zea, which may hinder the adaptation and establishment of H. zea to peripheral habitat. These findings highlight the importance of assessing peripheral population structure in relation to ecological and evolutionary dynamics of this and other highly reproductive and dispersive species.

  • Helicoverpa zea and bt cotton in the united states
    GM crops & food, 2012
    Co-Authors: Randall G Luttrell, Ryan E Jackson
    Abstract:

    Helicoverpa zea (Boddie), the bollworm or corn earworm, is the most important lepidopteran pest of Bt cotton in the United States. Corn is the preferred host, but the insect feeds on most flowering crops and wild host plants. As a cotton pest, bollworm has been closely linked to the insecticide-resistance prone Heliothis virescens (F.), tobacco budworm. Immature stages of the two species are difficult to separate in field environments. Tobacco budworm is very susceptible to most Bt toxins, and Bt cotton is considered to be “high dose.” Bollworm is less susceptible to Bt toxins, and Bt cotton is not “high dose” for this pest. Bt cotton is routinely sprayed with traditional insecticides for bollworm control. Assays of bollworm field populations for susceptibility to Bt toxins expressed in Bt cotton have produced variable results since pre-deployment of Bt cottons in 1988 and 1992. Analyses of assay response trends have been used by others to suggest that field resistance has evolved to Bt toxins in bollworm...

  • spatial and temporal variability in host use by Helicoverpa zea as measured by analyses of stable carbon isotope ratios and gossypol residues
    Journal of Applied Ecology, 2010
    Co-Authors: Graham P. Head, J. R. Bradley, John W. Van Duyn, D. D. Hardee, Ryan E Jackson, Randall Luttrell, J J Adamczyk, J Gore, Rogers B Leonard, John R Ruberson
    Abstract:

    Summary 1. A high dose ⁄ refuge strategy has been adopted in the USA to manage the risk of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) resistance in target pests such as the cotton bollworm (CBW), Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) in transgenic Bt cotton Gossypium hirsutum L. Structured refuges, consisting of non-Bt cotton, have been a mandated part of this strategy to produce non-selected insects that are temporally and spatially synchronous with insects from the Bt crop, diluting Bt resistance alleles through mating. However, the bollworm is highly polyphagous and exploits a large number of crop and weedy hosts concurrently with Bt cotton.

Xianchun Li - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • alkaline phosphatase 2 is a functional receptor of cry1ac but not cry2ab in Helicoverpa zea
    Insect Molecular Biology, 2019
    Co-Authors: G Liang, M Zhang, Xianchun Li
    Abstract:

    : Although membrane-bound alkaline phosphatases (ALPs) have been proposed as a receptor for Cry1Ac in a few lepidopteran species, their potential functions as a Cry2Ab receptor are yet to be verified. To determine if ALP2 also serves as a receptor for Cry1Ac and even for Cry2Ab in Helicoverpa zea, we measured the potency of activated Cry1Ac and Cry2Ab against midgut and fat body cell lines of H. zea and the ovarian cell line of Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) expressing H. zea ALP2 (HzALP2) or transfected with HzALP2 double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). Relative to the control cells, the three cell lines expressing HzALP2 were more susceptible to Cry1Ac but there was no difference for Cry2Ab. By contrast, the two H. zea cell lines transfected with HzALP2 dsRNA were resistant to Cry1Ac while kept susceptible to Cry2Ab. Furthermore, RNA interference knockdown of HzALP2 in H. zea larvae enhanced larval survival on Cry1Ac-containing diets. These findings indicate that HzALP2 functions as a receptor of Cry1Ac but not Cry2Ab.

  • apn1 is a functional receptor of cry1ac but not cry2ab in Helicoverpa zea
    Scientific Reports, 2016
    Co-Authors: Min Zhang, G Liang, Kongming Wu, Xinzhi Ni, Xianchun Li
    Abstract:

    Lepidopteran midgut aminopeptidases N (APNs) are phylogenetically divided into eight clusters, designated as APN1–8. Although APN1 has been implicated as one of the receptors for Cry1Ac in several species, its potential role in the mode of action of Cry2Ab has not been functionally determined so far. To test whether APN1 also acts as one of the receptors for Cry1Ac in Helicoverpa zea and even for Cry2Ab in this species, we conducted a gain of function analysis by heterologously expressing H. zea APN1 (HzAPN1) in the midgut and fat body cell lines of H. zea and the ovarian cell line of Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) and a loss of function analysis by RNAi (RNA interference) silencing of the endogenous APN1 in the three cell lines using the HzAPN1 double strand RNA (dsRNA). Heterologous expression of HzAPN1 significantly increased the susceptibility of the three cell lines to Cry1Ac, but had no effects on their susceptibility to Cry2Ab. Knocking down of the endogenous APN1 made the three cell lines resistant to Cry1Ac, but didn’t change cell lines susceptibility to Cry2Ab. The findings from this study demonstrate that HzAPN1 is a functional receptor of Cry1Ac, but not Cry2Ab.

  • Natural history and intragenomic dynamics of the Transib transposon Hztransib in the cotton bollworm Helicoverpa zea.
    Insect Molecular Biology, 2010
    Co-Authors: Erxia Du, Xinzhi Ni, Hui-yan Zhao, Xianchun Li
    Abstract:

    : Hztransib, recently identified from Helicoverpa zea, represents the first intact and transcriptionally active Transib element. Its open reading frame was detected in Helicoverpa armigera, from which H. zea evolved, and in Helicoverpa assulta, the common ancestor of H. zea and H. armigera, but its remaining parts were found only in H. armigera. Thirty-nine Hztransib insertion sites, all of which are polymorphic, were detected from eight populations of H. zea. Out of the 39 insertion sites, 35 were not frequently occupied, with 1-33 occurrences in a total of 128 individuals from the eight populations (16 larvae per population). Its copy number ranged from 5.8 to 14.2 per individual, with putative intact copies always more abundant than internally deleted ones. Taking this evidence together, Hztransib probably transferred to H. zea from H. armigera and most likely still retains its capacity to maintain structural integrity, increase copy number and remobilize in H. zea.

  • plant allelochemicals differentially regulate Helicoverpa zea cytochrome p450 genes
    Insect Molecular Biology, 2002
    Co-Authors: May R Berenbaum, Xianchun Li, Mary A Schuler
    Abstract:

    : Four cytochrome P450 genes, CYP6B8, CYP6B9, CYP6B27 and CYP6B28, exist in the Helicoverpa zea genome as two pairs of paralogs that evolved from gene duplication and 5'-polar gene conversion events. RT-PCR gel blot analyses have shown that all of these genes are expressed constitutively in midguts of all larval instars, suggesting that they have primary roles in the detoxification of plant allelochemicals. Among these, CYP6B9 is expressed only in midgut tissue whereas its paralog, CYP6B27, is expressed primarily in midgut and secondarily in fat body and ovary. CYP6B28 is expressed in midgut, fat body and, to lesser extents in ovary and integument whereas its paralog, CYP6B8, is expressed in midgut and to some extent in fat body. Comparison of the expression levels induced by eight plant allelochemicals, one drug (phenobarbital), and an insecticide (alpha-cypermethrin) indicates that, for the most part, the four P450s respond individually to these inducers, with all four induced strongly by chlorogenic acid, a shikimate pathway intermediate and a lignin biosynthesis intermediate present in a wide variety of plants, and indole-3-carbinol, a glucobrassicin breakdown product present in the Brassicaceae. The multiple levels at which these P450 genes are apparently diverging (e.g. transcriptional responses, protein sequences) support the suggestion that gene conversion events facilitate gene evolution by allowing duplicated copies greater time to acquire selectable differences in both coding and promoter sequences.

  • molecular cloning and expression of cyp6b8 a xanthotoxin inducible cytochrome p450 cdna from Helicoverpa zea
    Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 2000
    Co-Authors: Xianchun Li, May R Berenbaum, Mary A Schuler
    Abstract:

    Abstract Xanthotoxin, a plant allelochemical, induces α-cypermethrin insecticide tolerance in Helicoverpa zea (corn earworm); inhibition of tolerance by piperonyl butoxide implicates cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (P450s) in the detoxification of this insecticide. To characterize the xanthotoxin-inducible P450 that might mediate α-cypermethrin tolerance in this species, a cDNA library prepared from xanthotoxin-induced H. zea fifth instar larvae was screened with cDNAs encoding furanocoumarin-metabolizing P450s from Papilio polyxenes ( CYP6B1v2 ) and P. glaucus ( CYP6B4v2 ) as well as a sequence-related P450 from Helicoverpa armigera ( CYP6B2 ). One full-length cDNA isolated in this screening shares 51–99% amino acid identity with the CYP6B subfamily of P450s isolated from Papilio and Helicoverpa species and, thus, has been designated CYP6B8 . All of these CYP6B subfamily members share a number of highly conserved domains, including substrate recognition site 1 (SRS1) that is critical for xanthotoxin metabolism by CYP6B1v2 from Papilio polyxenes and coumarin metabolism by CYP2a5 from Mus musculus . Northern and RT-PCR analyses indicate that CYP6B8 expression is strongly induced by xanthotoxin and phenobarbital and negligibly induced by α-cypermethrin.

Randall G Luttrell - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • Helicoverpa zea and bt cotton in the united states
    GM crops & food, 2012
    Co-Authors: Randall G Luttrell, Ryan E Jackson
    Abstract:

    Helicoverpa zea (Boddie), the bollworm or corn earworm, is the most important lepidopteran pest of Bt cotton in the United States. Corn is the preferred host, but the insect feeds on most flowering crops and wild host plants. As a cotton pest, bollworm has been closely linked to the insecticide-resistance prone Heliothis virescens (F.), tobacco budworm. Immature stages of the two species are difficult to separate in field environments. Tobacco budworm is very susceptible to most Bt toxins, and Bt cotton is considered to be “high dose.” Bollworm is less susceptible to Bt toxins, and Bt cotton is not “high dose” for this pest. Bt cotton is routinely sprayed with traditional insecticides for bollworm control. Assays of bollworm field populations for susceptibility to Bt toxins expressed in Bt cotton have produced variable results since pre-deployment of Bt cottons in 1988 and 1992. Analyses of assay response trends have been used by others to suggest that field resistance has evolved to Bt toxins in bollworm...