Cloning and expression analysis of a G-protein alpha subunit-G alpha o in the rice water weevil Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus Kuschel

The open reading frame (ORF) encoding a novel G protein a subunit, Lo G[alpha]o, was cloned from the parthenogenetic rice water weevil, Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus Kuschel (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). The Lo G[alpha]o ORF encodes a protein of 354 amino acid residues. The deduced protein sequence shares high homology with G[alpha]o from other species. The expression patterns of Lo G[alpha]o in various adult tissues were indicated by real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot. The results showed that Lo G[alpha]o mRNA was expressed at similar levels in tissues except relative high levels in the antennae of adult, and Lo G[alpha]o protein of an apparent molecular mass of about 40 kDa was expressed in various tissues of the adult. Immunocytochemical localization showed that Lo G[alpha]o was mainly expressed in the dendrites of the trichoid sensilla in the antenna of the weevil. The tissue and cellular localization of Lo G[alpha]o suggests that Lo G[alpha]o may take a part in signal transduction of olfactory/gustatory. [copyright] 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.