Characterization of ecdysteroid biosynthesis in the pond wolf spider, Pardosa pseudoannulata

Ecdysteroids, as the key growth hormones, regulate moulting, metamorphosis and reproduction in arthropods. Ecdysteroid biosynthesis is catalysed by a series of cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (CYP450s) encoded by Halloween genes, including spook (spo), phantom (phm), disembodied (dib), shadow (sad) and shade (shd). The ecdysteroid biosynthesis in insects is clear with 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) as the main ecdysteroid. However, the information on the major ecdysteroids in arachnids is limited. In this study, Halloween genes spo, dib, sad and shd, but not phm, were identified in the pond wolf spider, Pardosa pseudoannulata. Phylogenetic analysis grouped arachnid and insect Halloween gene products into two CYP450 clades, the CYP2 clan (spo and phm) and the mitochondrial clan (dib, sad, and shd). In P. pseudoannulata, the temporal expression profile of the four Halloween genes in concurrence with spiderling moulting with steady increase in the course of the 2nd instar followed by a rapid dropdown once moulting was completed. Spatially, the four Halloween genes were highly expressed in spiderling abdomen and in the ovaries of female adults. In parallel, ponasterone A (PA), but not 20E, was detected by LC-MS/MS analysis in P. pseudoannulata, and it was demonstrated as a functional ecdysteroid in the spider by accelerating of moulting with PA addition. The present study revealed the different ecdysteroid biosynthesis pathways in spiders and insects.