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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Gainesville, Florida » Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology » Mosquito and Fly Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #356297
Research Project: Biting Arthropod Surveillance and Control

Location: Mosquito and Fly Research

Title: Overexpression of a glutathione S-transferase (Mdgst) and a galactosyltransferase-like gene (Mdgt1) is responsible for imidacloprid resistance in house flies

Author
item REID, WILLIAM - North Carolina State University
item SUN, HAINA - Cornell University
item Becnel, James
item CLARK, ANDREW - Cornell University
item SCOTT, JEFFREY - Cornell University

Submitted to: Pest Management Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/15/2018
Publication Date: 12/5/2018
Citation: Reid, W.R., Sun, H., Becnel, J.J., Clark, A.G., Scott, J.G. 2018. Overexpression of a glutathione S-transferase (Mdgst) and a galactosyltransferase-like gene (Mdgt1) is responsible for imidacloprid resistance in house flies. Pest Management Science. 75(1):37-44. https://doi.org/10.1002/ps.5125.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ps.5125

Interpretive Summary: Scientists at the Center for Medical, Veterinary and Agricultural Entomology and collaborators have conducted a study to identify the underlying processes that cause imidacloprid resistance which is an important first step towards the development of novel and sensitive resistance monitoring techniques. It will be valuable to investigate if overexpression of certain genes (Mdgst and Mdgt1) are found in other imidacloprid resistant populations.

Technical Abstract: Neonicotinoids are the largest class of insecticides and are used for control of house fly populations at animal production facilities throughout the world. There have been several reports of neonicotinoid resistance in house fly populations, but identification of the factors involved in resistance has proven challenging. The KS8S3 population of house flies is highly resistant to the neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid due to two factors: one on chromosome 3 and one on chromosome 4. A comparative transcriptomic approach was used, followed by validation using transgenic Drosophila melanogaster to investigate the genes responsible for resistance in the KS8S3 strain. Overexpression of a microsomal glutathione S-transferase (Mdgst) was identified as the factor likely responsible for resistance on chromosome 3. Resistance on chromosome 4 appears to be due to an unidentified trans-regulatory gene which causes overexpression of a galactosyltransferase-like gene (Mdgt1). No single nucleotide polymorphisms were found that could be associated with imidacloprid resistance.