Colour patterns in butterflies and moths are crucial traits for adaptation. Previous investigations have highlighted genes responsible for pigmentation (ie yellow and ebony). However, the mechanisms by which these genes are regulated in lepidopteran insects remain poorly understood. To elucidate this, molecular studies involving dipterans have largely analysed the cis‐regulatory regions of pigmentation genes and have revealed cis‐regulatory modularity. Here, we used well‐developed transgenic techniques in Bombyx mori and demonstrated that cis‐regulatory modularity controls tissue‐specific expression of the yellow gene. We first identified which body parts are regulated by the yellow gene via black pigmentation. We then isolated three discrete regulatory elements driving tissue‐specific gene expression in three regions of B. mori larvae. Finally, we found that there is no apparent sequence conservation of cis‐regulatory regions between B. mori and Drosophila melanogaster, and no expression driven by the regulatory regions of one species when introduced into the other species. Therefore, the trans‐regulatory landscapes of the yellow gene differ significantly between the two taxa. The results of this study confirm that lepidopteran species use cis‐regulatory modules to control gene expression related to pigmentation, and represent a powerful cadre of transgenic tools for studying evolutionary developmental mechanisms.

中文翻译：

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蚕蛾幼虫黄色基因表达的模块化顺式调控逻辑。

蝴蝶和飞蛾的颜色模式是适应的关键特征。先前的研究突出了负责色素沉着的基因（即黄色和乌木色）。但是，目前尚不清楚在鳞翅目昆虫中调控这些基因的机制。为了阐明这一点，涉及二倍体的分子研究在很大程度上分析了色素沉着基因的顺式调控区域，并揭示了顺式调控模块性。在这里，我们使用了家蚕中成熟的转基因技术，并证明了顺式调控模块控制着黄色的组织特异性表达基因。我们首先确定了黄色基因通过黑色素沉积调节了哪些身体部位。然后，我们分离了三个离散的调控元件，以驱动桑蚕幼虫的三个区域中的组织特异性基因表达。最后，我们发现在桑蚕和黑腹果蝇之间没有明显的顺式调控区序列保守性，并且在引入另一种时没有一种物种的调控区驱动表达。因此，两个类群之间黄色基因的反式调控景观存在显着差异。这项研究的结果证实鳞翅目物种使用顺式调控模块来控制与色素沉着相关的基因表达，并代表着强大的转基因工具研究进化发展机制。