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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Corvallis, Oregon » Horticultural Crops Disease and Pest Management Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #391285
Research Project: Sustainable Management of Arthropod Pests in Horticultural Crops

Location: Horticultural Crops Disease and Pest Management Research Unit

Title: Pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (PBAN) in insects

Author
item Choi, Man-Yeon

Submitted to: Korean Journal of Applied Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/11/2022
Publication Date: 3/1/2022
Citation: Choi, M.Y. 2022. Pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (PBAN) in insects. Korean Journal of Applied Entomology. 61(1):15-28. https://doi.org/10.5656/KSAE.2022.02.0.013.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5656/KSAE.2022.02.0.013

Interpretive Summary: Over two decades, insect neuropeptide hormones and their receptors have been considered promising targets for pest control, because they are involved in various key biological processes in insects. Disruption of essential functions of the target hormones leads to novel pest management. We developed insect receptor-based screening technology for the isolation of bioactive peptides using an insect cell expression system has been demonstrated for insecticide discovery. In this paper, we introduce one of insect neurohormones, pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (PBAN), with emphasis on basic research and application for pest control.

Technical Abstract: Neuropeptides are the largest group of insect hormones. They regulate various physiological actions, such as fat body homeostasis, feeding, digestion, excretion, circulation, reproduction, metamorphosis, and behavior throughout all life stages. The PRXamide peptide family (X, a variable amino acid) is a well-characterized neuropeptide component with a common amino acid sequence, PRXamide (NH2) at the C-terminal end conserved across Insecta. The PRXamide peptides are classified into three subfamilies, each having diverse biological roles in insects: (1) pyrokinin (PK) includes the pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (PBAN) and the diapause hormone (DH), (2) the capability (CAPA) peptides, and (3) the ecdysis-triggering hormone (ETH). PBAN as a member of PK subfamily has been identified to stimulate pheromone biosynthesis in moths three decades ago. Since then, different research groups have extensively studied PBAN peptides from a broad spectrum of arthropods. In this paper, we briefly review insect PBAN molecules with emphasis on gene structure and expression, signal transduction, physiological mechanism in sex pheromone biosynthesis, and application for pest control.