The circadian clock gene (Clock) regulates photoperiodic time measurement and its downstream process determining maternal induction of embryonic diapause in a cricket

In response to short days in autumn, most temperate multivoltine insects enter diapause, a state in which development or reproduction is suppressed or arrested, which serves to coordinate their development and physiology (or that of offspring) with annual changes in the environment (i.e. photoperiodism). This response is mediated by a measurement of time based on photoperiod (photoperiodic time measurement), which is thought to be regulated by a circadian clock. However, some studies also demonstrate the involvement of the circadian clock in an output process that generates phenotypes associated with diapause. To gain further insight into this, we silenced the Clock (Clk) gene, the main regulator of the circadian clock, in the band-legged ground cricket Dianemobius nigrofasciatus (Orthoptera: Trigonidiidae). Silencing the Clk gene using RNA interference (Clk RNAi) in female crickets resulted in abnormal circadian rhythms under constant darkness and light-dark conditions, thereby indicating the central role of this gene in the circadian clock mechanism. Clk RNAi females exhibited long-day oviposition behaviour, even when reared under short-day conditions, thereby indicating the involvement of Clk in photoperiodic time measurement. In addition, Clk RNAi females immediately laid non-diapause-type eggs, which was not recorded in control females under either short-day or long-day conditions and cannot be explained in terms of dysfunction of photoperiodic time measurement. Accordingly, we speculate that Clk could also be involved in a downstream process that results in the laying of diapause-type eggs.

Automated summary

Most temperate multivoltine insects enter diapause in autumn, suppressing development or reproduction to synchronize with environmental changes. Photoperiodism and the circadian clock play important roles in this process, with the Clock gene possibly involved in both time measurement and downstream diapause-related processes.