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Lipocalins in Arthropod Chemical Communication
Jiao Zhu1,2, Alessio Iannucci3, Francesca Romana Dani3
1Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, Biosensor Technologies, Tulln, Austria.
Genome Biology and Evolution
|April 30, 2021
Summary
Lipocalins are versatile proteins found across many organisms. Recent findings suggest these lipocalins may play a key role in chemical communication for arthropods, a function previously unassigned to this protein family in these species.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Evolutionary Biology
- Zoology
Background:
- Lipocalins are a successful protein superfamily, commonly acting as extracellular carriers for hydrophobic ligands.
- While known in mammals as odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) for pheromone transport, their role in other organisms, particularly arthropods, remained unclear.
- Arthropod chemical communication was thought to involve protein families structurally distinct from lipocalins.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the potential role of lipocalins in chemical communication within arthropods.
- To explore the evolutionary expansion and diversification of lipocalin genes in various arthropod species.
Main Methods:
- Database searches for lipocalin gene sequences in insects, crustaceans, and chelicerates.
- Analysis of gene duplication, differentiation, and expression patterns in chemosensory organs.
Main Results:
- Extensive duplication and diversification of lipocalin genes were identified in several arthropod species.
- Large numbers and wide divergence of these lipocalin genes were observed within and between species.
- Expression in chemosensory organs suggests a functional role in sensory perception.
Conclusions:
- The expansion and expression patterns of lipocalin genes in arthropods strongly suggest their involvement in chemical communication.
- This finding challenges previous assumptions and opens new avenues for understanding semiochemical mediation in arthropods.
- Lipocalins may represent a convergent evolutionary solution for chemical sensing across diverse animal groups.
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