Essential role of eclosion hormone precursor and receptor genes in desert locust ecdysis

The process of molting represents a critical phase in the life cycle of arthropods, marking periods of growth and development. Central to this process is the eclosion hormone (EH), a neurohormone that plays a pivotal role in initiating and regulating the complex sequence of events leading to successful molting in holometabolan species. Very little information is available in Hemimetabola, which display a different kind of development characterized by gradual changes. This paper reports on the identification of the two EH precursors and the EH receptor (EHR), a guanylyl cyclase, in a hemimetabolan pest species, the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria. Using qRT-PCR, an in-depth profiling study of Schgr-EH-1, -2 and Schgr-EHR transcripts was performed. Silencing of Schgr-EH-1, -2 and Schgr-EHR resulted in lethality at the expected time of ecdysis, thereby showing their crucial role during this process.