• Title/Summary/Keyword: Araneus ventricosus

Search Result 25, Processing Time 0.022 seconds

Molecular Cloning of Two cDNAs Encoding an Insecticidal Toxin from the Spider, Araneus ventricosus, and Construction of a Recombinant Baculovirus Expressing a Spider Toxin

  • Chung, Eun-Hwa;Lee, Kwang-Sik;Han, Ji-Hee;Je, Yeon-Ho;Chang, Jin-Hee;Roh, Jong-Yul
    • International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
    • /
    • v.4 no.1
    • /
    • pp.43-49
    • /
    • 2002

  • We have cloned cDNAs encoding toxin from the spider, Araneus ventricosus, and constructed a recombinant baculovirus expressing the insecticidal toxin. The cDNAs encoding toxin were cloned from the cDNA library of A. ventricosus. Sequence analysis of the cDNAs encoding the toxin of A. ventricosus revealed that the 240 bp cDNA for AvTox-1 and 192 bp cDNA for AvTox-2 have an open reading frame of 80 and 64 amino acid residues, respectively. The deduced protein sequence of the toxin genes of AvTox-1 and AvTox-2 was aligned to that of the snack Anemonia sulcata and scorpion Centruroides limpidus limpidus, respectively. Northern blot analysis indicated that AvTox-2 toxin gene showed a fat body-spe-cific expression pattern at the transcriptional level. Furthermore, we have explored the possibility of improving baculovirus by incorporating the A. vontricosus toxin gene into Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus genome under the control of polyhedrin promoter, The AvTox-2 toxin gene was expressed as approximately 5.8 kDa band in the recombinant baculovirus-injected silkworm larvae. Bioassays with the recombinant virus expressing AvTox-2 on 5th instar silkworm larvae demonstrated a decrease in the time to kill $(LT_{50} days)$ compared to wild-type BmNPV-Kl $(LT_{50} 6.72 days)$ in the injection of 10 viruses. These results indicate that A. ventricosus toxin is a novel member of the spider toxin family, suggesting that the toxin gene can be used in recombinant baculoviruses to reduce insect feeding damage and increase the speed of insect kill.

  • PDF KSCI

Enhanced Resistance to Botrytis cinerea Mediated by Transgenic Expression of the Spider Chitinase Gene AvChit in Arabidopsis

  • Hur, Yeon-Jae;Kim, Doh-Hoon
    • International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
    • /
    • v.19 no.2
    • /
    • pp.259-264
    • /
    • 2009

  • The AvChit gene encodes for a chitinase from the spider, Araneus ventricosus. This spider, A. ventricosus, is an abundant species in Korea. Arabidopsis thaliana plants were transformed with the AvChit gene using Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Thirteen transgenic lines expressing the AvChit gene were obtained. Functional expression of the AvChit gene in transgenic Arabidopsis was confirmed by Southern, northern and western blot analysis. The AvChit cDNA was expressed as a 61 kDa polypeptide in baculovirus-infected insect Sf9 cells. AvChit protein extracted from transgenic Arabidopsis exhibited high levels of chitinase activity. Phytopathological tests showed that two transgenic Arabidopsis lines expressing the AvChit gene displayed high levels of resistance to gray mold disease (Botrytis cinerea).

  • PDF KSCI