Project description
Understanding how the Hippo signalling pathway regulates endosymbiont
The rice weevil, Sitophilus oryzae, is a small insect that destroys stored grains such as rice and wheat. Its secret weapon is a bacterium called Sodalis pierantonius that lives inside its body. Research shows differences in the Hippo signalling pathway gene expression between young symbiotic and aposymbiotic adults, suggesting a potential role in endosymbiosis. However, its function in this context is still unknown. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the HipPiE project will investigate the regulation of endosymbiont dynamics to develop sustainable pest management strategies through symbiosis disruption. The project will explore how the Hippo signalling pathway regulates endosymbiont load in young adult weevils using interference RNA, flow cytometry, imaging, and transcriptomics.
Objective
The rice weevil Sitophilus oryzae is a pest insect which can cause major damages to cereal crops worldwide. S. oryzae hosts an endosymbiont, the intracellular gram-negative bacterium Sodalis pierantonius, which produces amino acids necessary for the host’s cuticle thickening. This biological interaction, called nutritional endosymbiosis, generally increases the weevil’s fitness, for example as a thicker cuticle protects the host against desiccation. Consistently, the bacterial load in S. oryzae has been shown to fluctuate throughout the development, with a peak in young adults, at the same time as cuticle thickening. However, maintaining endosymbiotic bacteria also constitutes an energetic cost for the host, and after the peak in young adult weevils, S. pierantonius load decreases. As the endosymbiont is present in specialised cells (i.e. bacteriocytes), organised in organs (i.e. bacteriomes), regulation of S. pierantonius load relies on a strong coordination between the two partners. The HipPiE project aims at investigating further the regulation of the endosymbiont dynamic, in order to find new sustainable strategies for pest management, using symbiosis disruption. By using dual transcriptomics at different developmental stages in S. oryzae, a recent study from the host team showed that several genes from the Hippo signalling pathway were differentially expressed in young symbiotic adult weevils as compared to weevils with no endosymbiotic bacteria (aposymbiotic weevils), suggesting a role of this pathway in the endosymbiont dynamic. The Hippo signalling pathway is involved in several biological responses like growth, cell differentiation, cell death, and tissue regeneration. However, its role in endosymbiosis has not been studied yet. During this project, we will study the role of the Hippo signalling pathway in the regulation of the endosymbiont load in young adult weevils, using interference RNA, flow cytometry, imaging and transcriptomics.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences biological behavioural sciences ethology biological interactions
- natural sciences biological sciences zoology entomology
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics RNA
- natural sciences biological sciences microbiology bacteriology bacteriomes
- agricultural sciences agriculture, forestry, and fisheries agriculture grains and oilseeds cereals
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
69621 VILLEURBANNE CEDEX
France
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