Skip to main content
Entomology 2023 Main banner
Bayer
Icon Legend
This session is not in your schedule.
This session is in your schedule. Click again to remove it.
Presentation Icons
In-Person
In-Person
On-Demand
On-Demand
Student Competition
Student Competition
Poster
Poster
Ticketed Event
Ticketed Event
Back
ViewAttendees 1

Student 10-Minute Paper

Physiology, Biochemistry, and Toxicology

Student Competition

Student

Grad Competition PBT: Physiology

Localization of ingested dsRNA in the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile

Monday, November 6, 2023
11:18 AM – 11:30 AM ET
Location: Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, National Harbor 13
In-Person Student Competition
RNA interference remains the most practical option for exploring gene function in eusocial insects, because the life histories of these species frequently preclude the use of CRISPR-mediated mutagenesis. However, the efficacy of RNA interference relies on the ability of dsRNA molecules to be introduced into the insect body and make their way through the hemolymph to the tissues expressing the target gene, where they need to be shuttled through the cell membrane into the cell in order to knock down expression. Targeting systemically expressed genes represents little issue, but the efficacy of RNAi to knock down genes expressed in specific tissues, such as odorant receptors, remains in question. To determine the ability of dsRNA molecules to migrate in the body of the Argentine ant, we use qPCR and histological sectioning to track the presence of ingested dsRNA molecules within the bodies of workers.