Abstract
Small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) are the most diverse but also the most poorly known family of molecular chaperones, and they play essential roles in various biological processes. The striped stem borer, Chilo suppressalis (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), is one of the most serious pests of rice, causing extensive damage and yield loss. In this study, we isolated and characterized five members of the sHSPs family-Cshsp19.8, Cshsp21.4, Cshsp21.5, Cshsp21.7a, and Cshsp21.7b-from C. suppressalis. The cDNAs of these genes encoded proteins of 177, 187, 191, 191, and 191 amino acids with isoelectric points of 7.0, 5.6, 6.1, 6.3, and 6.3, respectively. While Cshsp19.8, Cshsp21.5, and Cshsp21.7b had no introns, Cshsp21.4 and Cshsp21.7a contained one and two introns, respectively. Structural analysis indicated that all five Cshsps possessed conserved arginine and a V/IXI/V motif, which is related to hydrophobic characteristics of sHSPs. The five heat shock proteins can be classified into two main groups: an orthologous type (Cshsp21.4 and Cshsp21.7a) and a species-specific type (Cshsp19.8, Cshsp21.5, and Cshsp21.7b). Real-time quantitative PCR analyses revealed that Cshsp19.8, Cshsp21.5, Cshsp21.7a, and Cshsp21.7b all exhibited their highest expression levels within Malpighian tubules or the hindgut, while such levels were found in the head for Cshsp21.4. The expression of Csshsps at different developmental stages revealed that the mRNA levels of Cshsp19.8, Cshsp21.4, Cshsp21.5, and Cshsp21.7b peaked in adults, whereas the highest level of Cshsp21.7a was observed in first instar larvae. Cshsp19.8 and Cshsp21.7b were both upregulated dramatically by heat and cold, and Cshsp21.5 could be induced by cold stress. Neither Cshsp21.4 nor Cshsp21.7a responded to heat or cold. These results demonstrated that different Csshsps play distinctive roles in the regulation of the physiological activities in C. suppressalis.