Genetic transformation of the silkmoth

Insect science cannot advance without genetic manipulations that would provide causal evidence of gene function. We report heritable germline transformation of the silkmoth Bombyx mori with the piggyBac transposon. The transgene is marked with a jellyfish gene for the green fluorescent protein (GFP). GFP is visible in the silkmoth eyes because it is regulated by the conserved Pax-6 protein, necessary for the eye development. Besides the selectable marker, we insert into the Bombyx chromosomes genes of interest under a heat-inducible hsp70 promoter from Drosophila. For the first time we show that a transgene can be induced by heat shock in vivo in a non-drosophilid insect, establishing a system for future transgenic studies.

See Uhlirova M., Asahina M., Riddiford L.M. and Jindra M. (2002) Heat-inducible transgenic expression in the silkmoth Bombyx mori. Dev. Genes Evol. 212, 145-151.