Eur. J. Entomol. 104 (1): 1-7, 2007 | DOI: 10.14411/eje.2007.001

A serine protease from the midgut of the bumblebee, Bombus ignitus (Hymenoptera: Apidae): cDNA cloning, gene structure, expression and enzyme activity

Young Moo CHOO1, Kwang Sik LEE1, Hyung Joo YOON2, Sang Beom LEE2, Ji Hyeon KIM3, Hung Dae SOHN1, Byung Rae JIN*,1
1 College of Natural Resources and Life Science, Dong-A University, Busan 604-714, Korea
2 Department of Agricultural Biology, National Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology, Suwon 441-100, Korea
3 Dept. of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering, Dongguk University, Seoul 100-715, Korea

A serine protease gene was cloned from the bumblebee, Bombus ignitus. The B. ignitus serine protease (BiSP) gene spans 1702 bp and consists of four introns and five exons coding for 250 amino acid residues. Southern blot analysis of genomic DNA suggested that BiSP gene is a single copy gene. The cDNA encoding BiSP was expressed as a 28-kDa polypeptide in baculovirus-infected insect cells and the recombinant BiSP showed activity in a protease enzyme assay. BiSP was specifically expressed in the midgut of B. ignitus queens, males, and workers, suggesting that the BiSP is a gut enzyme involved in the digestion of dietary proteins.

Keywords: Apidae, baculovirus expression vector, Bombus ignitus, bumblebee, cDNA cloning, enzyme, expression, gene structure, serine protease

Received: April 26, 2006; Revised: June 13, 2006; Accepted: June 13, 2006; Published: January 3, 2007  Show citation

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Moo CHOO, Y., LEE, K.S., Joo YOON, H., Beom LEE, S., KIM, J.H., SOHN, H.D., & JIN, B.R. (2007). A serine protease from the midgut of the bumblebee, Bombus ignitus (Hymenoptera: Apidae): cDNA cloning, gene structure, expression and enzyme activity. EJE, 104(1), 1-7. doi: 10.14411/eje.2007.001
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