Decoding and engineering temperature-sensitive lethality in Ceratitis capitata for pest control

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Aumann, Roswitha A.; Gouvi, Georgia; Gregoriou, Maria - Eleni; Rehling, Tanja; Sollazzo, Germano; Bourtzis, Kostas; Schetelig, Marc F.
• 署名单位: Imperial College London; Justus Liebig University Giessen; Justus Liebig University Giessen; International Atomic Energy Agency; University of Patras
• 刊物名称: PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0027-12887
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2503604122
• 发表日期: 2025-07-15
• 关键词: mediterranean fruit-fly; transfer-rna synthetase; genetic sexing strains; diptera tephritidae; SYSTEM; chromosome; sequence; genome

摘要

The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is a species-specific and environmentally friendly method for effectively controlling pest insect populations based on releasing reared, sterile insects into infested areas. Sex sorting in rearing facilities, enabling male-only releases, is necessary to ensure SIT programs are efficient, cost-effective and, in case of mosquito control, also safe. This can be greatly facilitated by genetic sexing strains (GSS), exhibiting sex-specific phenotypic markers. However, the development of GSS remains challenging. The construction of a temperature-sensitive lethal (tsl)-based GSS in the Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratitis capitata) over three decades ago was considered a major breakthrough for SIT programs but was never successfully replicated in other pests. After over 30 y of research, we have pinpointed a specific mutation in the C. capitata lysine--tRNA ligase (Lysyl-tRNA synthetase, LysRS) gene responsible for the tsl phenotype. Introducing this specific mutation into a wild-type strain produced full embryonic lethality under heat stress, replicating the original mutant phenotype. The random integration of a LysRS minigene reversed this effect. The high conservation of LysRS among insects suggests that tsl-based GSS could be expanded to multiple pest species and extend applications of SIT programs for disease prevention and the protection of agriculture.