果蝇脂肪体中 $ P_{iwi} $ 影响生长发育的新功能鉴定

Piwi(P-element induced wimpy testis)是一类与生殖相关的蛋白,主要在生殖系统中表达,对生殖细胞的形成和维持DNA的完整性及稳定性十分重要,但其在其他器官和组织中的功能尚不清楚。文章利用模式生物果蝇进行研究,发现降低Piwi在脂肪体中的表达导致果蝇的羽化率、生长周期和寿命出现问题,并且脂肪体的功能受到严重影响,说明脂肪体内表达的Piwi蛋白对于果蝇生长发育是必须的。进一步的研究表明,在脂肪体细胞内敲低Piwi基因引起活性氧(reactive oxygen species, ROS)的大量产生,干扰脂肪体细胞的储存功能,进而影响果蝇的生长发育。该研究为鉴定Piwi在脂肪体的新功能提供了新思路,并且对相关疾病的治疗具有重要价值。

P-element induced wimpy testis (Piwi) is a kind of reproduction-related protein, which is mainly expressed in the reproductive system and plays a very important role in the formation of germ cells and the maintenance of DNA integrity and stability. However, the functions of Piwi protein in other systems are still unclear. In this paper, the model organism, Drosophila melanogaster, was used for exploration, and it was found that the reduced expression of the Piwi in the fat body led to problems in emergence rate, growth cycle and life span of Drosophila melanogaster, and the function of the fat body was seriously affected, indicating that the expression of Piwi protein in the fat body was necessary for the growth and development of Drosophila melanogaster. Further studies showed that the knockdown of Piwi gene in fat body caused a large amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which interfered with the storage function of fat body cells, thus affecting the growth and development of Drosophila melanogaster. This study provides a new way to identify the new function of Piwi in the fat body and is valuable for the treatment of related diseases.