2025-11-27 理化学研究所
吸血蚊の体内に含まれるアミノ酸の時間的変化を解析・可視化
<関連情報>
- https://www.riken.jp/press/2025/20251127_1/index.html
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12915-025-02460-z
アミノ酸プロファイルの時間的変化が蚊の生理とネッタイシマカの卵の成熟を調整する Temporal changes in amino acid profiles coordinate mosquito physiology and egg maturation in Aedes aegypti
Yusuke Kato,Ayano Oi,Naoshi Dohmae,Fumiaki Obata & Chisako Sakuma
BMC Biology Published:27 November 2025
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-025-02460-z
Abstract
Background
Female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes utilize host blood to support egg maturation by digesting, absorbing, and metabolizing its components. Among these, amino acids are essential as both signaling molecules and building blocks for yolk proteins. While their overall importance is established, the individual dynamics and regulation of each amino acid remain insufficiently understood.
Results
We systematically profiled free and protein-bound amino acids in whole bodies, ovaries, and excreta over time after blood feeding, revealing distinct temporal dynamics across amino acids. Notably, tyrosine, enriched in yolk proteins, exhibited a biphasic pattern: a transient decrease between 6 and 9 h post blood meal, followed by accumulation during egg maturation. We also performed RNA-seq and found that amino acid metabolism is partially regulated by 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E), indicating hormonal control of amino acid homeostasis. Integrating RNA-seq analysis with amino acid profiling further suggested an adaptation to metabolic imbalance between host blood and ovaries. The early decrease in tyrosine was attributed to enzymatic degradation by 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (Hpd), whose expression is induced by 20E, a key hormone orchestrating post-blood-feeding gene expression and egg maturation. Pharmacological inhibition of Hpd caused tyrosine accumulation and increased lethality, indicating that tight regulation of tyrosine catabolism is essential for survival.
Conclusions
This study highlights the temporally coordinated metabolism of individual amino acids during mosquito reproduction. Our dataset serves as a valuable resource for understanding nutrient allocation with endocrine regulation, as well as a foundation for developing novel strategies to disrupt mosquito survival by targeting the metabolic enzymes.
