Dynamic Changes in Chemosensory Gene Expression during the Dendrolimus punctatus Mating Process.

Area of Science:

• Entomology
• Molecular Biology
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Insect chemosensation is crucial for environmental interactions, with moths exhibiting highly sensitive olfaction.
• Understanding the link between olfactory plasticity and molecular pathways is key to insect olfactory recognition.
• The pine caterpillar moth, *Dendrolimus punctatus*, relies on chemosensation for mating and host plant selection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify chemosensory genes in *D. punctatus*.
• To analyze the dynamic expression of these genes throughout the mating process.
• To uncover genes potentially involved in host plant location for oviposition.

Main Methods:

• Transcriptome data generation from male and female *D. punctatus* at four mating stages.
• Bioinformatic analysis to identify olfactory-related gene families and their expression patterns.
• Comparative analysis of odorant receptors (ORs) with related species.

Main Results:

• Identified major olfactory-related gene families, including odorant binding proteins (OBPs), chemosensory proteins (CSPs), and odorant receptors (ORs).
• Expression levels of OBPs, CSPs, and ORs correlated with mating behavior.
• Discovered a unique group of ORs specific to the *Dendrolimus* genus.
• Identified female-upregulated OBPs and ORs post-mating, potentially involved in host plant volatile detection for oviposition.

Conclusions:

• This research provides a comprehensive dataset of chemosensory genes in *D. punctatus* during mating.
• It elucidates the relationship between chemosensory gene expression and critical physiological activities like mating and oviposition.
• The findings facilitate future functional studies on *D. punctatus* chemosensory genes and insect olfactory mechanisms.