Sugar transporters of the major facilitator superfamily in aphids; from gene prediction to functional characterization

Analysis of the pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) genome using signatures specific to the Major Facilitator Superfamily (Pfam Clan CL0015) and the Sugar_tr family (Pfam Family PF00083) has identified 54 genes encoding potential sugar transporters, of which 38 have corresponding ESTs. Twenty-nine genes contain the InterPro IPR003663 hexose transporter signature. The protein encoded by Ap_ST3, the most abundantly expressed sugar transporter gene, was functionally characterized by expression as a recombinant protein. Ap_ST3 acts as a low-affinity uniporter for fructose and glucose that does not depend on Na+ or H+ for activity. Ap_ST3 was expressed at elevated levels in distal gut tissue, consistent with a role in gut sugar transport. The A. pisum genome shows evidence of duplications of sugar transporter genes.