Bombyx mori with eggs

Deploying genetic technologies in insect genomes involves the expression of genes. There are a number of promoters that have broad host ranges but, in general, insect biologists, with some exceptions, do not have a deep selection of tissue specific promoters . Xu and colleagues have isolated and characterized the Vitellogenin promoter from Bombyx mori. The promoter-containing fragment is about 800bp and seems to respond as expected for a Vg promoter. It can be activated by 20-hydroxyecdysone and is expressed in a tissue-, stage- and sex-specific manner. This is a useful addition to the Lepidoptera toolbox.

Functional characterization of the vitellogenin promoter in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, J. Xu, Y. Q. Wang, Z. Q. Li, L. Ling, B. S. Zeng, L. You, Y. Z. Chen, A. F. M. Aslam, Y. P. Huang and A. J. Tan Insect Molecular Biology DOI: 10.1111/imb.12102