Competitive Sperm-Marked Beetles for Monitoring Approaches in Genetic Biocontrol and Studies in Reproductive Biology

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Abstract

Sperm marking provides a key tool for reproductive biology studies, but it also represents a valuable monitoring tool for genetic pest control strategies such as the sterile insect technique. Sperm-marked lines can be generated by introducing transgenes that mediate the expression of fluorescent proteins during spermatogenesis. The homozygous lines established by transgenesis approaches are going through a genetic bottleneck that can lead to reduced fitness. Transgenic SIT approaches have mostly focused on Dipteran and Lepidopteran pests so far. With this study, we provide sperm-marked lines for the Coleopteran pest model organism, the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, based on the β2-tubulin promoter/enhancer driving red (DsRed) or green (EGFP) fluorescence. The obtained lines are reasonably competitive and were thus used for our studies on reproductive biology, confirming the phenomenon of ‘last-male sperm precedence’ and that the spermathecae are deployed for long-term sperm storage, enabling the use of sperm from first mating events even after secondary mating events for a long period of time. The homozygosity and competitiveness of the lines will enable future studies to analyze the controlled process of sperm movement into the long-term storage organ as part of a post-mating cryptic female choice mechanism of this extremely promiscuous species.

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Isah, M. D., Atika, B., Dippel, S., Ahmed, H. M. M., & Wimmer, E. A. (2022). Competitive Sperm-Marked Beetles for Monitoring Approaches in Genetic Biocontrol and Studies in Reproductive Biology. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 23(20). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232012594

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