Spurge toxins as a winder of evolution in hawkmoths: Phorbol ester detoxification by Hyles euphorbiae (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae)

大戟的幼虫以大戟属(大戟科)的几个野生物种为食，其中含有具有多种有害生物活性的佛波醇酯。因此，已经表明，胡萝卜对高剂量的共致癌佛波酯TPA(12-十四烷基佛波酯-13-乙酸酯)完全不敏感。申请人发表的和初步的实验表明，幼虫代谢二萜酯，而不是像以前所说的那样隔离它们。在摄食TPA的幼虫的粪便中检测到几种假定的TPA代谢物，这表明有几种生物学途径参与其中。在这个项目中，可能的佛波醇酯的解毒途径应该被阐明和鉴定。这个交叉学科的项目结合了分析化学和分子生物学，以获得对所涉及的酶反应的详尽的了解。为了了解这一生态特征作为海藻属内一项关键创新的进化相关性，将把胡萝卜属的代谢物与具有不同偏好(食用植物光谱、对TPA的敏感性)的其他海鞘种的代谢物进行比较，并对候选酶进行表征。

The larvae of Hyles euphorbiae feed on several spurge species of the genus Euphorbia (Euphorbiaceae), containing phorbol esters with numerous harmful biological activities. Accordingly, it has been shown, that H. euphorbiae is completely insensitive to high doses of the co-carcinogenic phorbol diester TPA (12-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate). Published and preliminary experiments by the applicant indicated, that the larvae metabolise the diterpene esters, rather than sequestering them as had been previously suggested. Several putative metabolites of TPA have been detected in the faeces of TPA-fed larvae, suggesting several biological pathways involved. In this project, possible detoxification pathways of phorbol esters by H. euphorbiae shall be elucidated and identified.This interdisciplinary project combines analytical chemistry and molecular biology to gain an exhaustive insight of the enzymatic reactions involved. To understand the evolutionary relevance of this ecological trait as a key innovation within the genus Hyles, metabolites of H. euphorbiae will be compared to those of additional Hyles species with different preferences (food plant spectra, sensitivity to TPA) and enzyme candidates will be characterized.