부산대학교 도서관

Background: RNA interference (RNAi) is a powerful method to inhibit gene expression in a sequence specific manner. Results: Here, we described the development of RNAi by micro-injection of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) in the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum. Injection of dsRNA into whole aphid body induced the silencing of two marker genes with different expression patterns: the ubiquitously expressed Ap-crt genes encoding a calreticulin and the gut specific Ap-cath-L gene encoding a cathepsin-L. Time-course analysis of the silencing showed similar temporal patterns for both genes: inhibition started at 1 day after injection, reached its maximum at 5 days and stopped at 7 days. A comparable 40% decrease of gene expression was observed for Ap-crt and Ap-cath-L. Conclusion: The pea aphid is the first Hemipteran insect for which genome sequence will be available soon. The gene knockdown technique developed in this study will be an essential postgenomic tool for further investigations in aphidology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]