Molecular Cloning and Expression Analysis of the Gene Encoding DDC in the Ant Polyrhachis vicina Roger (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Authors

  • Wenna Zhang Shaanxi Normal University
  • Gengsi Xi Shaanxi Normal University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.13102/sociobiology.v59i3.895

Keywords:

L-3, 4-Dihydroxyphenylalanine decarboxylase (DDC), Molecular Cloning, Polyrhachis vicina Roger, Real-time quantitative PCR

Abstract

L-3, 4-Dihydroxyphenylalanine decarboxylase (DDC) is an important enzyme which catalyses L-dopa decarboxylation to dopamine in the synthesis of catecholamine neurotransmitters and (5-HTP) to 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT). In this paper, a DDC homologue was isolated from Polyrhachis vicinna Roger (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). The full length cDNA of PvDDC is 1893 base pairs (bp) and contains a 5'-untranslated region of71 nucleotides and a 3'-UTR 379 bp long. The open reading frame of PvDDC encodes a deduced 480-amino acid peptide. Real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction was used to compare PvDDC mRNA expression during P. vicina development in different castes. The results show that PvDDC mRNA is differentially expressed in different stages of ant development, in whole bodies and the heads of different castes. During the development, the highest expression level is in pupae. The levels also vary among castes, the highest level is in males. These investigations indicate that PvDDC mRNA possesses a function to regulate ant caste-specificity and development at the level of transcription.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Downloads

Published

2015-08-12

How to Cite

Zhang, W., & Xi, G. (2015). Molecular Cloning and Expression Analysis of the Gene Encoding DDC in the Ant Polyrhachis vicina Roger (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Sociobiology, 59(3), 859–873. https://doi.org/10.13102/sociobiology.v59i3.895

Issue

Vol. 59 No. 3 (2012)

Section

Articles

License

Sociobiology is a diamond open access journal which means that all content is freely available without charge to the user or his/her institution. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles in this journal without asking prior permission from the publisher or the author. This is in accordance with the BOAI definition of open access.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

 

    1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

 

    1. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

 

  1. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).