Molecular Characterization of UDP-<i>N</i>-Acetylglucosamine Pyrophosphorylase and Its Role in the Growth and Development of the White-Backed Planthopper <i>Sogatella furcifera</i> (Hemiptera: Delphacidae)

Abstract

UDP-N-acetylglucosamine pyrophosphorylase (UAP) is a key enzyme in the chitin biosynthesis pathway of insects. Here, we described the gene SfUAP in the white-backed planthopper Sogatella furcifera (Horváth) with an open reading frame of 1470 bp. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) suggested that SfUAP exhibits a different developmental expression pattern and a higher expression after molting. The highest expression of SfUAP was observed in the integument tissues of adults, whereas head tissues showed negligible expression. RNAi-based gene silencing decreased the mRNA transcript levels in S. furcifera nymphs injected with double-stranded RNA of SfUAP. Finally, SfUAP silencing led to 84% mortality and malformed phenotypes in nymphs. Thus, our results can help better understand the role of SfUAP in S. furcifera.

Keywords

• UDP-<i>N</i>-acetylglucosamine pyrophosphorylase
• <i>Sogatella furcifera</i>
• gene expression profiling
• RNA interference