Mosquitoes Possess Specialized Cuticular Proteins That Are Evolutionarily Related to the Elastic Protein Resilin
Resilin is an elastic protein that is vital to insects’ vigorous movement. Canonical resilin proteins possess the R&R Consensus, a chitin-binding domain conserved in a family of cuticular proteins, and highly repetitive sequences conferring elastic properties. In the malaria vector mosquito, <...
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MDPI AG
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Insects |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/14/12/941 |
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| author | Sakura Ohkubo Tohki Shintaku Shotaro Mine Daisuke S. Yamamoto Toru Togawa |
| author_facet | Sakura Ohkubo Tohki Shintaku Shotaro Mine Daisuke S. Yamamoto Toru Togawa |
| author_sort | Sakura Ohkubo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Resilin is an elastic protein that is vital to insects’ vigorous movement. Canonical resilin proteins possess the R&R Consensus, a chitin-binding domain conserved in a family of cuticular proteins, and highly repetitive sequences conferring elastic properties. In the malaria vector mosquito, <i>Anopheles gambiae</i>, however, a cuticular protein has been found that has an R&R Consensus resembling that of resilin but lacks the repetitive sequences (here, we call it resilin-related or resilin-r). The relationship between resilin-r and resilin was unclear. It was also unknown whether resilin-r is conserved in mosquitoes. In this paper, phylogenetic and structural analyses were performed to reveal the relationship of resilin homologous proteins from holometabolous insects. Their chitin-binding abilities were also assessed. A resilin-r was found in each mosquito species, and these proteins constitute a clade with resilin from other insects based on the R&R Consensus sequences, indicating an evolutionary relationship between resilin-r and resilin. The resilin-r showed chitin-binding activity as same as resilin, but had distinct structural features from resilin, suggesting that it plays specialized roles in the mosquito cuticle. Another resilin-like protein was found to exist in each holometabolous insect that possesses resilin-like repetitive sequences but lacks the R&R Consensus. These results suggest that similar evolutionary events occurred to create resilin-r and resilin-like proteins. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T20:39:27Z |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-4450 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T20:39:27Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
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| series | Insects |
| spelling | doaj.art-0321c0b9991b496bb5da5177cd17111f2023-12-22T14:16:17ZengMDPI AGInsects2075-44502023-12-01141294110.3390/insects14120941Mosquitoes Possess Specialized Cuticular Proteins That Are Evolutionarily Related to the Elastic Protein ResilinSakura Ohkubo0Tohki Shintaku1Shotaro Mine2Daisuke S. Yamamoto3Toru Togawa4Department of Biosciences, College of Humanities and Sciences, Nihon University, Sakurajyosui 3-25-40, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8550, JapanDepartment of Biosciences, College of Humanities and Sciences, Nihon University, Sakurajyosui 3-25-40, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8550, JapanDepartment of Biosciences, College of Humanities and Sciences, Nihon University, Sakurajyosui 3-25-40, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8550, JapanDivision of Medical Zoology, Department of Infection and Immunity, Jichi Medical University, Yakushiji 3311-1, Shimotsuke 329-0498, JapanDepartment of Biosciences, College of Humanities and Sciences, Nihon University, Sakurajyosui 3-25-40, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8550, JapanResilin is an elastic protein that is vital to insects’ vigorous movement. Canonical resilin proteins possess the R&R Consensus, a chitin-binding domain conserved in a family of cuticular proteins, and highly repetitive sequences conferring elastic properties. In the malaria vector mosquito, <i>Anopheles gambiae</i>, however, a cuticular protein has been found that has an R&R Consensus resembling that of resilin but lacks the repetitive sequences (here, we call it resilin-related or resilin-r). The relationship between resilin-r and resilin was unclear. It was also unknown whether resilin-r is conserved in mosquitoes. In this paper, phylogenetic and structural analyses were performed to reveal the relationship of resilin homologous proteins from holometabolous insects. Their chitin-binding abilities were also assessed. A resilin-r was found in each mosquito species, and these proteins constitute a clade with resilin from other insects based on the R&R Consensus sequences, indicating an evolutionary relationship between resilin-r and resilin. The resilin-r showed chitin-binding activity as same as resilin, but had distinct structural features from resilin, suggesting that it plays specialized roles in the mosquito cuticle. Another resilin-like protein was found to exist in each holometabolous insect that possesses resilin-like repetitive sequences but lacks the R&R Consensus. These results suggest that similar evolutionary events occurred to create resilin-r and resilin-like proteins.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/14/12/941resilinresilin-relatedcuticular proteinmosquito |
| spellingShingle | Sakura Ohkubo Tohki Shintaku Shotaro Mine Daisuke S. Yamamoto Toru Togawa Mosquitoes Possess Specialized Cuticular Proteins That Are Evolutionarily Related to the Elastic Protein Resilin Insects resilin resilin-related cuticular protein mosquito |
| title | Mosquitoes Possess Specialized Cuticular Proteins That Are Evolutionarily Related to the Elastic Protein Resilin |
| title_full | Mosquitoes Possess Specialized Cuticular Proteins That Are Evolutionarily Related to the Elastic Protein Resilin |
| title_fullStr | Mosquitoes Possess Specialized Cuticular Proteins That Are Evolutionarily Related to the Elastic Protein Resilin |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mosquitoes Possess Specialized Cuticular Proteins That Are Evolutionarily Related to the Elastic Protein Resilin |
| title_short | Mosquitoes Possess Specialized Cuticular Proteins That Are Evolutionarily Related to the Elastic Protein Resilin |
| title_sort | mosquitoes possess specialized cuticular proteins that are evolutionarily related to the elastic protein resilin |
| topic | resilin resilin-related cuticular protein mosquito |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/14/12/941 |
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