Identification of a developmentally and hormonally regulated Delta-Class glutathione S-transferase in rice moth Corcyra cephalonica

Glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) are a large family of multifunctional enzymes, known for their role in cellular detoxification. Here we report a cytosolic GST with optimal activity at alkaline pH (8.3) from the visceral fat body of late-last instar (LLI) larvae of a lepidopteran insect rice moth Corcyra cephalonica. All previously known GSTs are active between pH 6.0 to 6.5. Purification and characterization revealed the Corcyra cephalonica GST (CcGST) as a 23-kDa protein. HPLC and 2D analysis showed a single isoform of the protein in the LLI visceral fat body. Degenerate primer based method identified a 701-nucleotide cDNA and the longest open reading frame contained 216 amino acids. Multiple sequence and structural alignment showed close similarity with delta-class GSTs. CcGST is present mainly in the fat body with highest activity at the late-last instar larval stage. Juvenile hormone (JH) negatively inhibits the CcGST activity both ex vivo and in vivo. We speculate that high expression and activity of CcGST in the fat body of the late-last instar larvae, when endogenous JH titer is low may have role in the insect post-embryonic development unrelated to their previously known function.