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Molecular Mechanism of the Two-Component Suicidal Weapon of Neocapritermes taracua Old Workers

SYSNO ASEP	0459003
Document Type	J - Journal Article
R&D Document Type	Journal Article
Subsidiary J	Článek ve WOS
Title	Molecular Mechanism of the Two-Component Suicidal Weapon of Neocapritermes taracua Old Workers
Author(s)	Bourguignon, T. (CZ) Šobotník, J. (CZ) Brabcová, Jana (UOCHB-X)_RID Sillam-Dusses, D. (FR) Buček, Aleš (UOCHB-X)_RID Krasulová, Jana (UOCHB-X)_RID Vytisková, B. (CZ) Demianova, Z. (AT) Mareš, Michael (UOCHB-X)_{RID, ORCID} Roisin, Y. (BE) Vogel, H. (DE)
Source Title	Molecular Biology and Evolution. - : Oxford University Press - ISSN 0737-4038 Roč. 33, č. 3 (2016), s. 809-819
Number of pages	11 s.
Language	eng - English
Country	US - United States
Keywords	altruism ; colony defense ; termite ; Isoptera ; laccase
Subject RIV	CE - Biochemistry
R&D Projects	LO1302 GA MŠMT - Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MEYS)
Institutional support	UOCHB-X - RVO:61388963
UT WOS	000371219500018
EID SCOPUS	84964467111
DOI	10.1093/molbev/msv273
Annotation	In termites, as in many social insects, some individuals specialize in colony defense, developing diverse weaponry. As workers of the termite Neocapritermes taracua (Termitidae: Termitinae) age, their efficiency to perform general tasks decreases, while they accumulate defensive secretions and increase their readiness to fight. This defensive mechanism involves self-sacrifice through body rupture during which an enzyme, stored as blue crystals in dorsal pouches, converts precursors produced by the labial glands into highly toxic compounds. Here, we identify both components of this activated defense system and describe the molecular basis responsible for the toxicity of N. taracua worker autothysis. The blue crystals are formed almost exclusively by a specific protein named BP76. By matching N. taracua transcriptome databases with amino acid sequences, we identified BP76 to be a laccase. Following autothysis, the series of hydroquinone precursors produced by labial glands get mixed with BP76, resulting in the conversion of relatively harmless hydroquinones into toxic benzoquinone analogues. Neocapritermes taracua workers therefore rely on a two-component activated defense system, consisting of two separately stored secretions that can react only after suicidal body rupture, which produces a sticky and toxic cocktail harmful to opponents.
Workplace	Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry
Contact	asep@uochb.cas.cz ; Kateřina Šperková, Tel.: 232 002 584 ; Viktorie Chládková, Tel.: 232 002 434
Year of Publishing	2017

Number of the records: 1