Dual Roles of Glutathione in Ecdysone Biosynthesis and Antioxidant Function During Larval Development in Drosophila
| INVESTIGATION Dual Roles of Glutathione in Ecdysone Biosynthesis and Antioxidant Function During Larval Development in Drosophila Sora Enya,*,1,2 Chikana Yamamoto,*,2 Hajime Mizuno,†,3 Tsuyoshi Esaki,†,4 Hsin-Kuang Lin,* Masatoshi Iga,‡,5 Kana Morohashi,* Yota Hirano,* Hiroshi Kataoka,‡ Tsutomu Masujima,† Yuko Shimada-Niwa,§,6 and Ryusuke Niwa**,††,6 *Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences and **Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan, †Laboratory of Single-Cell Mass Spectrometry, The Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) Quantitative Biology Center, Suita, Osaka 565-0874, Japan, ‡Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8562, Japan, §Life Science Center of Tsukuba Advanced Research Alliance, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8577, Japan, and ††Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Kawaguchi, Saitama 332-0012, Japan ORCID IDs: 0000-0001-5757-4329 (Y.S.-N.); 0000-0002-1716-455X (R.N.) ABSTRACT Ecdysteroids, including the biologically active hormone 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E), play essential roles in controlling many developmental and physiological events in insects. Ecdysteroid biosynthesis is achieved by a series of specialized enzymes encoded by the Halloween genes. Recently, a new class of Halloween gene, noppera-bo (nobo), encoding a glutathione S-transferase (GST) in dipteran and lepidopteran species, has been identified and characterized. GSTs are well known to conjugate substrates with the reduced form of glutathione (GSH), a bioactive tripeptide composed of glutamate, cysteine, and glycine. We hypothesized that GSH itself is required for ecdysteroid biosynthesis. However, the role of GSH in steroid hormone biosynthesis has not been examined in any organisms.
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