In silico identification of off-target pesticidal dsRNA binding in honey bees (Apis mellifera)
Background Pesticidal RNAs that silence critical gene function have great potential in pest management, but the benefits of this technology must be weighed against non-target organism risks. Methods Published studies that developed pesticidal double stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) were collated into a databa...
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PeerJ Inc.
2017-12-01
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Online Access: | https://peerj.com/articles/4131.pdf |
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author | Christina L. Mogren Jonathan Gary Lundgren |
author_facet | Christina L. Mogren Jonathan Gary Lundgren |
author_sort | Christina L. Mogren |
collection | DOAJ |
description | Background Pesticidal RNAs that silence critical gene function have great potential in pest management, but the benefits of this technology must be weighed against non-target organism risks. Methods Published studies that developed pesticidal double stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) were collated into a database. The target gene sequences for these pesticidal RNAs were determined, and the degree of similarity with sequences in the honey bee genome were evaluated statistically. Results We identified 101 insecticidal RNAs sharing high sequence similarity with genomic regions in honey bees. The likelihood that off-target sequences were similar increased with the number of nucleotides in the dsRNA molecule. The similarities of non-target genes to the pesticidal RNA was unaffected by taxonomic relatedness of the target insect to honey bees, contrary to previous assertions. Gene groups active during honey bee development had disproportionately high sequence similarity with pesticidal RNAs relative to other areas of the genome. Discussion Although sequence similarity does not itself guarantee a significant phenotypic effect in honey bees by the primary dsRNA, in silico screening may help to identify appropriate experimental endpoints within a risk assessment framework for pesticidal RNAi. |
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institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
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language | English |
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spelling | doaj.art-c3c19f29096c4f6483e8f87a1f0f23622023-12-03T07:08:59ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592017-12-015e413110.7717/peerj.4131In silico identification of off-target pesticidal dsRNA binding in honey bees (Apis mellifera)Christina L. Mogren0Jonathan Gary Lundgren1Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai’i, United States of AmericaEcdysis Foundation, Estelline, SD, USABackground Pesticidal RNAs that silence critical gene function have great potential in pest management, but the benefits of this technology must be weighed against non-target organism risks. Methods Published studies that developed pesticidal double stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) were collated into a database. The target gene sequences for these pesticidal RNAs were determined, and the degree of similarity with sequences in the honey bee genome were evaluated statistically. Results We identified 101 insecticidal RNAs sharing high sequence similarity with genomic regions in honey bees. The likelihood that off-target sequences were similar increased with the number of nucleotides in the dsRNA molecule. The similarities of non-target genes to the pesticidal RNA was unaffected by taxonomic relatedness of the target insect to honey bees, contrary to previous assertions. Gene groups active during honey bee development had disproportionately high sequence similarity with pesticidal RNAs relative to other areas of the genome. Discussion Although sequence similarity does not itself guarantee a significant phenotypic effect in honey bees by the primary dsRNA, in silico screening may help to identify appropriate experimental endpoints within a risk assessment framework for pesticidal RNAi.https://peerj.com/articles/4131.pdfRNAiNon-targetRisk assessmentTransgenic cropsPesticideInsecticide |
spellingShingle | Christina L. Mogren Jonathan Gary Lundgren In silico identification of off-target pesticidal dsRNA binding in honey bees (Apis mellifera) PeerJ RNAi Non-target Risk assessment Transgenic crops Pesticide Insecticide |
title | In silico identification of off-target pesticidal dsRNA binding in honey bees (Apis mellifera) |
title_full | In silico identification of off-target pesticidal dsRNA binding in honey bees (Apis mellifera) |
title_fullStr | In silico identification of off-target pesticidal dsRNA binding in honey bees (Apis mellifera) |
title_full_unstemmed | In silico identification of off-target pesticidal dsRNA binding in honey bees (Apis mellifera) |
title_short | In silico identification of off-target pesticidal dsRNA binding in honey bees (Apis mellifera) |
title_sort | in silico identification of off target pesticidal dsrna binding in honey bees apis mellifera |
topic | RNAi Non-target Risk assessment Transgenic crops Pesticide Insecticide |
url | https://peerj.com/articles/4131.pdf |
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