Heat shock protein 70 gene family in the Glanville fritillary butterfly and their response to thermal stress

•Cloned cDNA of Hsp70 genes from the Glanville fritillary butterfly.•Verified the expression patterns of McHsp70s after thermal stress.•The expression dynamics of McHsp70s during recovery time.

Temperature variation in the environment is a great challenge to organisms. Induction of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) is a common genetic mechanism to cope with thermal stress. The Glanville fritillary butterfly (Melitaea cinxia) is a model species in population and evolutionary biology, and its behavior and life history are greatly influenced by ambient temperature. We cloned and sequenced the full coding sequences of seven hsp70 genes from the Glanville fritillary. Of those genes, McHsc70-1 and McHsc70-2 were identified as heat shock cognate 70 (hsc70), of which the latter located in endoplasmic reticulum. We analyzed the expression patterns of different hsp70s under various thermal stresses using quantitative PCR. Heat shock at 40 °C for 2 h induced high expression of McHsp70-1, McHsp70-2 and McHsc70-2. Only McHsc70-2 had a small increase after cold shock at 0 °C for 2 h. Acclimation at 35 °C for three days before heat shock reduced expression of McHsp70 after heat shock. The maximum mRNA level of McHsp70s was reached in the first 2 h after the heat shock. This study uncovers the complexity of the hsp70 system, and provides the valuable information for further temperature-related research in the Glanville fritillary butterfly.

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