Frame
| The molecular action of juvenile hormone is one of the greatest enigmas in insect endocrinology. This situation contrasts with that of ecdysteroids, where a great deal of information on their molecular action is available. Yet, progress toward unveiling the molecular mechanisms of juvenile hormone action are of paramount importance to progress towards the comprehension of most important processes in insect physiology, like growth control, development, metamorphosis and reproduction. |
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Approach
| Our aim is unveiling factors involved in juvenile hormone signaling in Blattella germanica, especially in the context of metamorphosis. Firstly, studying in B. germanica those factors discovered in holometabolan models, hoping that the function of some of them might be conserved in our model. Then, searching new signaling factors in the juvenile hormone hierarchy in B. germanica. Information from the molecular action of ecdysone will be inspiring, in the sense that signaling networks of ecdysteroid hierarchy can show common or interacting elements with those of juvenile hormone. |
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Objectives
Among others:
- Identification of genes directly induced by juvenile hormone using, for example, Suppression Subtractive Hybridization.
- Study of putative components of the juvenile hormone receptor or transcription factors involved in juvenile hormone signaling.
- Comparison of juvenile hormone and ecdysone gene hierarchies. Search for shared factors. Interaction between juvenile hormone and ecdysone regulatory pathways. |
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