Proteomic-components provide insights into the defensive secretion in termite workers of the soldierless genus Ruptitermes.

Proteomic-components provide insights into the defensive secretion in termite workers of the soldierless genus Ruptitermes. J Proteomics. 2019 Dec 18;:103622 Authors: Costa-Leonardo AM, da Silva IB, Poiani SB, Santos-Pinto JRAD, Esteves FG, da Silva LHB, Palma MS Abstract Termite soldiers constitute the defensive frontline of the colonies, despite workers also perform such tasks, especially within the Neotropical Apicotermitinae, in which all species are soldierless. Workers of the genus Ruptitermes display an extreme form of defense, characterized by body rupture and release of a sticky secretion. Previous observations suggested that such behavior may be advantageous against enemies, but the chemical composition of this secretion has been neglected. Here we firstly provide the proteomic profile of the defensive secretion of Ruptitermes reconditus and Ruptitermes pitan workers. Additionally, the mechanisms of action of this behavior was evaluated through different bioassays. A total of 446 proteins were identified in R. reconditus and 391 proteins in R. pitan, which were classified into: toxins, defensins and proteolytic enzymes; sticky components/ alarm communication; proteins related to detoxification processes; proteins involved in folding/conformation and post-translational modifications; housekeeping proteins; and uncharacterized/hypothetical proteins. According to the bioassays, the self-sacrifice is triggered by a physical sti...
Source: Journal of Proteomics - Category: Biochemistry Authors: Tags: J Proteomics Source Type: research