Non-targeted metabolomics reveals differences in the gut metabolic profile of the fall armyworm strains when feeding different food sources

Nathalia C Oliveira; Larry Phelan; Carlos A Labate; Fernando L Cônsoli

doi:10.1016/j.jinsphys.2022.104400

Non-targeted metabolomics reveals differences in the gut metabolic profile of the fall armyworm strains when feeding different food sources

J Insect Physiol. 2022 May-Jun:139:104400. doi: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2022.104400. Epub 2022 May 19.

Authors

Nathalia C Oliveira¹, Larry Phelan², Carlos A Labate³, Fernando L Cônsoli⁴

Affiliations

¹ Insect Interactions Laboratory, Department of Entomology and Acarology, Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil.
² Department of Entomology, OARDC, The Ohio State University, Wooster, OH, United States.
³ Multi-User Proteomics, Metabolomics and Lipidomics Laboratory, Department of Genetics, Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil.
⁴ Insect Interactions Laboratory, Department of Entomology and Acarology, Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil. Electronic address: fconsoli@usp.br.

PMID: 35598778
DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2022.104400

Abstract

Spodoptera frugiperda (fall armyworm - FAW) is an important polyphagous agricultural pest feeding on nearly 350 host plants. FAW is undergoing incipient speciation with two well-characterized host-adapted strains, the "corn" (CS) and "rice" (RS) strains, which are morphologically identical but carry several genes under positive selection for host adaptation. We used non-targeted metabolomics based on gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to identify differences in metabolite profiles of the larval gut of CS and RS feeding on different host plants. Larvae were fed on artificial diet, maize, rice, or cotton leaves from eclosion to the sixth instar, when they had their midgut dissected for analysis. This study revealed that the midgut metabolome of FAW varied due to larval diet and differed between the FAW host-adapted strains. Additionally, we identified several candidate metabolites that may be involved in the adaptation of CS and RS to their host plants. Our findings provide clues toward the gut metabolic activities of the FAW strains.

Keywords: Herbivore; Insect-plant interaction; Metabolite; Nutritional ecology; Spodoptera frugiperda.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Larva
Metabolome*
Metabolomics
Oryza*
Plants
Spodoptera / genetics
Zea mays