ABSTRACT
cDNA coding for two digestive lysozymes (MdL1 and MdL2) of the Musca domestica housefly was cloned and sequenced. MdL2 is a novel minor lysozyme, whereas MdL1 is the major lysozyme thus far purified from M. domestica midgut. MdL1 and MdL2 were expressed as recombinant proteins in Pichia pastoris, purified and characterized. The lytic activities of MdL1 and MdL2 upon Micrococcus lysodeikticus have an acidic pH optimum (4.8) at low ionic strength (ì = 0.02), which shifts towards an even more acidic value, pH 3.8, at a high ionic strength (ì = 0.2). However, the pH optimum of their activities upon 4-methylumbelliferyl N-acetylchitotrioside (4.9) is not affected by ionic strength. These results suggest that the acidic pH optimum is an intrinsic property of MdL1 and MdL2, whereas pH optimum shifts are an effect of the ionic strength on the negatively charged bacterial wall. MdL2 affinity for bacterial cell wall is lower than that of MdL1. Differences in isoelectric point (pI) indicate that MdL2 (pI = 6.7) is less positively charged than MdL1 (pI = 7.7) at their pH optima, which suggests that electrostatic interactions might be involved in substrate binding. In agreement with that finding, MdL1 and MdL2 affinities for bacterial cell wall decrease as ionic strength increases.
Subject(s)
Animals , Digestive System/enzymology , Houseflies/enzymology , Amino Acid Sequence , Biocatalysis , Cloning, Organism , DNA, Complementary/genetics , Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel , Hydrogen-Ion Concentration , Houseflies/genetics , Larva/enzymology , Molecular Sequence Data , Muramidase/genetics , Muramidase/isolation & purification , Pichia , Polymerase Chain Reaction , Substrate SpecificityABSTRACT
Toxicological studies of four insecticides (malathion, carbaryl, bioresmethrin, and GH 74) against Musca domestica vicinia (Ampang strain) were undertaken with particular reference to age, sex and posttreatment temperature. It was found that bioresmethrin and GH 74, both with a negative temperature coefficient, have great potential for use against houseflies. In vitro inhibitory studies of head and body esterases showed that unlike malathion and carbaryl, bioresmethrin had only negligible effect on these enzymes. The possibilities of using bioresmethrin and GH 74 for controlling the housefly problem in the Cameron Highlands, West Malaysia are discussed.