The medfly, Ceratitis capitata is an invasive fruitfly species (Fam. Tephritidae) of agricultural importance. Its high reproductive capacity, toghether with its polyphagous behavior, are responsible for spreading of this species in the last two centuries from sub-Saharan Africa to several tropical and sub-tropical regions worldwide. C. capitata has become a model species for the development and refinement of control methods. Some aspects of reproductive behaviour of this species are of paramount importance for improvement of the most commonly used and environmentally friendly control method, the SIT (Sterile Insect Technique). Polyandry is a common event in medfly, and natural populations and strains exhibit paternity skew which implies differential sperm use. Using a transgenic approach we have developed a direct sperm visualization system which makes it possible to follow the fate of sperm from different males in the female reproductive tract of the medfly. We have generated several lines in which the reporter genes GFP or DsRed, under the control of β2-tubulin sperm-specific promoter express in a stable, persistent and sex specific manner the GFP or DsRed fluorescent proteins at spermatogenesis level. These lines provide a powerful spermatogenesis marking system for genetic sexing and for easily identifying sperm in the inseminated females during the SIT monitoring procedures; this sperm-specific transgenic system may reduce the logistics and cost needed for the mass-raring, selection, release and monitoring. Moreover, it provides a tool to directly analyze the mechanisms which regulate the dynamics of sperm storage and usage.
A transgenic sperm marking system in the medfly, as a tool for pest control strategies and sperm use analysis.
BERTIN, SABRINA;
2007-01-01
Abstract
The medfly, Ceratitis capitata is an invasive fruitfly species (Fam. Tephritidae) of agricultural importance. Its high reproductive capacity, toghether with its polyphagous behavior, are responsible for spreading of this species in the last two centuries from sub-Saharan Africa to several tropical and sub-tropical regions worldwide. C. capitata has become a model species for the development and refinement of control methods. Some aspects of reproductive behaviour of this species are of paramount importance for improvement of the most commonly used and environmentally friendly control method, the SIT (Sterile Insect Technique). Polyandry is a common event in medfly, and natural populations and strains exhibit paternity skew which implies differential sperm use. Using a transgenic approach we have developed a direct sperm visualization system which makes it possible to follow the fate of sperm from different males in the female reproductive tract of the medfly. We have generated several lines in which the reporter genes GFP or DsRed, under the control of β2-tubulin sperm-specific promoter express in a stable, persistent and sex specific manner the GFP or DsRed fluorescent proteins at spermatogenesis level. These lines provide a powerful spermatogenesis marking system for genetic sexing and for easily identifying sperm in the inseminated females during the SIT monitoring procedures; this sperm-specific transgenic system may reduce the logistics and cost needed for the mass-raring, selection, release and monitoring. Moreover, it provides a tool to directly analyze the mechanisms which regulate the dynamics of sperm storage and usage.
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