Regulation of forkhead box O transcription factor by insulin signaling pathway controls the reproductive diapause of the lady beetle, Coccinella septempunctata.

In biological control programs, knowledge about diapause regulation in natural enemy insects provides important insight for improving long-term storage, transportation, and field adoption of these biological control agents. As a natural predator of agricultural pests, the lady beetle Coccinella septempunctata has been commercially mass-cultured and widely employed in pest management. In some insects, insulin signaling, in conjunction with the downstream transcription factor Forkhead box O (FoxO), are master regulators of multiple physiological processes involved in diapause, but it is unclear whether insulin signaling and FoxO affect the diapause of C. septempunctata. In this study, we use a combination of approaches to demonstrate that insulin signaling and FoxO mediate the diapause response in C. septempunctata. In diapausing beetles, application of exogenous insulin and knocking down expression of CsFoxo with RNA interference (RNAi) both rescued beetles from developmental arrest. In non-diapausing beetles, knocking down expression of the insulin receptor (CsInR) with RNA interference (RNAi) arrested ovarian development and decreased juvenile hormone (JH) content to levels comparable to the diapause state. Taken together, these results suggest that a shutdown of insulin signaling prompts the activation of the downstream FoxO gene, leading to the diapause phenotype.

Quality assessment of Telenomus remus successively reared on Spodoptera litura eggs for 30 generations.

BACKGROUND: Telenomus remus (Nixon) is a dominant natural enemy controlling the invasive pest Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith). Continuous rearing of egg parasitoids on alternative hosts is crucial for mass production and cost reduction. However, to ensure the effectiveness of natural enemy products against target pests in the field, it is necessary to evaluate the parasitoid quality during the mass-rearing process. Despite the successful rearing of this parasitoid on the alternative host Spodoptera litura (Fabricius) eggs, less attention has been paid to the quality of parasitoids continuously reared for multiple generations. Therefore, we evaluated the performance of T. remus reared on S. litura eggs for 30 generations via morphological characteristics, flight ability, and life table analysis. RESULTS: Wing length, wing width, body length, and right hind tibia length of T. remus did not differ among the different generations. However, the body length of female parasitoids was significantly longer than that of males for any generation. Although the proportion of 'flyers' and 'deformed' T. remus varied among generations, the flight ability did not decline significantly after rearing on S. litura eggs. Moreover, T. remus continuously reared on S. litura eggs maintained stable parasitism performance and life table parameters on the target host S. frugiperda eggs. CONCLUSION: S. litura eggs are suitable hosts for the mass-rearing of T. remus. This study can be subsequently used to guide the production and facilitate the application of T. remus in the control of S. frugiperda. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Cathepsin L Contributes to Reproductive Diapause by Regulating Lipid Storage and Survival of Coccinella septempunctata (Linnaeus).

Cathepsin L protease, which belongs to the papain-like cysteine proteases family, is an important player in many physiological and pathological processes. However, little was known about the role of cathepsin L in ladybird beetles (Coccinella septempuctata Linnaeus) during diapause. Here, we analyzed the characteristics of cathepsin L (CsCatL) in the females of C. septempunctata and its role during the diapause of the ladybeetle. CsCatL was cloned and identified from beetle specimens by rapid amplification of cDNA-ends (RACE). The cDNA sequence of CsCatL was 971 bp in length, including an 843 bp open reading frame encoding a protein of 280 amino acids. It was identified as the cathepsin L group by phylogenetic analysis. Knockdown of CsCatL by RNA interference led to decreased expression levels of fatty acid synthase 2 (fas 2) genes and suppressed lipid accumulation. Furthermore, silencing the CsCatL gene distinctly reduced diapause-related features and the survival of female C. spetempunctata under diapause-inducing conditions. The results suggested that the CsCatL gene was involved in fatty acid biosynthesis and played a crucial role in the survival of adult C. septempunctata during the diapause preparation stage.

Optimizing Photoperiod, Exposure Time, and Host-to-Parasitoid Ratio for Mass-Rearing of Telenomus remus, an Egg Parasitoid of Spodoptera frugiperda, on Spodoptera litura Eggs.

Telenomus remus (Nixon) is a dominant egg parasitoid of the destructive agricultural pest Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith), and so is used in augmentative biocontrol programs in several countries. An optimized mass-rearing system is essential to produce biological control products in a timely and cost-effective manner. In this study, the photoperiod, host egg:parasitoid ratio, and exposure time were evaluated to identify the optimal rearing conditions for T. remus on the alternative host Spodoptera litura (Fabricius) eggs. Results showed that increasing photoperiod above 12L:12D remarkably improved parasitoid progeny yield and life table parameters. Overlong photoperiods shortened female longevity, but within acceptable limits. There was a significant negative correlation between parasitism rate and host egg:parasitoid ratio under exposure times of 12 and 36 h, but not 24 h. Percentage of female progeny increased significantly along with increasing the host egg:parasitoid ratio. A significant negative relationship between the number of emerged adults per egg and the host egg:parasitoid ratio was observed at an exposure time of 36 h. It was concluded that T. remus may be mass-reared most efficiently on S. litura eggs using a photoperiod of more than 12L:12D, a 14-20:1 host egg:parasitoid ratio, and an exposure time of 24 h. These findings can be used to produce T. remus more efficiently and at lower costs.

Evaluating the Potential of Using Spodoptera litura Eggs for Mass-Rearing Telenomus remus, a Promising Egg Parasitoid of Spodoptera frugiperda.

Although Telenomus remus, a promising parasitoid of Spodoptera frugiperda, had been successfully reared on the eggs of Corcyra cephalonica in some countries, reports from China have argued that it is infeasible. Notably, studies from China have indicated that Spodoptera litura eggs could be a candidate host. Therefore, to further evaluate the potential of using S. litura eggs as hosts, we compared the development and parasitism of T. remus on the eggs of S. frugiperda and S. litura at temperatures between 20-32 °C. Our results showed that T. remus developed successfully on both host eggs at all of the tested temperatures, and the developmental duration and thermal requirements at each stage were similar between the two host species. The number of parasitized eggs was greater for S. litura than for S. frugiperda. Meanwhile, the emergence rate exceeded 86.6%, and it was significantly higher for S. litura than that for S. frugiperda, except at 29 °C. This study is the first time estimating the thermal requirements of T. remus at each stage. Moreover, we also recorded the morphological characteristics of T. remus at each stage. Our results demonstrate that S. litura eggs are more suitable than S. frugiperda eggs as an alternative host for the mass-rearing of T. remus in China. Understanding the thermal requirements and biological parameters contributes greatly to predicting the generation time and providing a reference for the mass-rearing and storage of the parasitoid.

Clinical features associated with the efficacy of chemotherapy in patients with glioblastoma (GBM): a surveillance, epidemiology, and end results (SEER) analysis.

BACKGROUND: Glioblastoma (GBM) is a highly malignant brain tumor with poor survival and prognosis. Randomized trials have demonstrated that chemotherapy improves survival in patients with GBM. This study aims to examine the clinical characteristics that are potentially associated with the efficacy of chemotherapy and the risk factors of GBM. METHODS: A total of 25,698 patients diagnosed with GBM were identified between 2004 and 2015 from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER). The clinical and demographic variables between groups were examined by Student's t-test and Pearson's chi-square test. GBM-specific survival (GBMSS) and overall survival (OS) were evaluated using the Kaplan-Meier method with the log-rank test. Univariable and multivariable analyses were also performed using the Cox proportional hazards model to identify statistically significant prognostic factors. RESULTS: Patients who received chemotherapy had better overall survival (median OS 13 vs. Three months, HR = 1.9224, 95%CI 1.8571-1.9900, p < 0.0001) and better GBMSS (median GBMSS of 12 vs. Three months, HR = 1.9379, 95%CI 1.8632-2.0156, p < 0.0001), compared to patients who did not. Further subgroup analysis revealed that among patients who underwent chemotherapy, those who were younger, with a supratentorial tumor, received surgery, or radiotherapy had both improved OS and GBMSS. Age, race, tumor location, tumor size, and treatments were identified as independent prognostic factors by multivariable analyses for patients with glioblastoma. CONCLUSION: Patients with GBM who were younger (< 65 years), underwent surgery, or radiotherapy can benefit more from chemotherapeutic regimens. Age, race, tumor size, tumor location, surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy were factors associated with the prognosis of patients with GBM.

Construction of a prognosis-predicting model based on autophagy-related genes for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients.

BACKGROUND: Autophagy, a highly conserved cellular catabolic process by which the eukaryotic cells deliver autophagosomes engulfing cellular proteins and organelles to lysosomes for degradation, is critical for maintaining cellular homeostasis in response to various signals and nutrient stresses. The dysregulation of autophagy has been noted in the pathogenesis of cancers. Our study aims to investigate the prognosis-predicting value of autophagy-related genes (ARG) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). RESULTS: The signature was constructed based on eight ARGs, which stratified HCC patients into high- and low-risk groups in terms of overall survival (OS) (Hazard Ratio, HR=4.641, 95% Confidential Interval, CI, 3.365-5.917, P=0.000). The ARG signature is an independent prognostic indicator for HCC patients (HR = 1.286, 95% CI, 1.194-1.385; P < 0.001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) for 5-year survival is 0.765. CONCLUSION: This study provides a potential prognostic signature for predicting the prognosis of HCC patients and molecular insights into the significance of autophagy in HCC. METHODS: Sixty-two differentially expressed ARGs and the clinical characteristics and basic information of the 369 enrolled HCC patients were retrieved from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. the Cox proportional hazard regression analysis was adopted to identify survival-related ARGs, based on which a prognosis predicting signature was constructed.

Molecular epidemiology of group A rotavirus in outpatient diarrhea infants and children in Chongqing, China, 2011-2015.

Human group A rotavirus (RVA) is the leading cause of acute viral gastroenteritis in children under 5 years old worldwide. The aim of this study was to investigate the genotype distribution of RVA in the Midwest of China. Sentinel-based surveillance of acute diarrhea was conducted at Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from 2011 to 2015. RVA was tested by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. The partial VP4 genes and VP7 genes of rotavirus were amplified and sequenced, and genotyping and phylogenetic analyses were performed. Among the 2236 stool specimens collected from children with acute gastroenteritis, 681 (30.46%) were positive for RVA. The majority of children (89.28%) who tested positive for RVA were children aged ≤2 years. The seasonal peak of RVA was in the winter. As for genotype, four strain combinations, G9P[8], G3P[8], G1P[8], and G2P[4] contributed to 75.62% (515/681) of the RVA-associated diarrhea cases. After a marked increase in G9P[8] (30.77%) in 2013, G9P[8] became the predominant genotype in 2014 and 2015, whilst the prevalence of G1P[8] was decreased to 2.72% in 2015. Unusual G-P combinations (eg, G1P[4], G9P[4], G4P[6], G3P[4], G2P[8]) were also detected sporadically over the study period. Phylogenetic tree analysis results showed that the VP7 sequences of G9 strains were clustered into two main lineages, and 77.34% of them were clustered into lineage VI, with the highest nucleotide similarity to the strain JS12-17(China). VP4 gene sequences of P[8] strains were almost P[8]-lineage 3. Substantial temporal variation in the circulation of various genotypes of rotavirus in Chongqing was observed during 2011-2015, and highlights the need for continuous surveillance of RVA infection for better understanding and control of RVA infection.