Annotated expressed sequence tags and xenobiotic detoxification in the aphid Myzus persicae (Sulzer)

Aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae) are phytophagous insects that are important agricultural pests. The enormous negative economic impacts caused by aphids worldwide are well known, and are mostly due to their high multiplication rate and the transmission of phytopathogenic viruses. Aphid management strategies mainly involve chemical treatments which are pollutants and are increasingly inefficient, since aphids have developed multiple insecticide-resistant mechanisms. Among the most economically important species is the green peach aphid Myzus persicae Sulzer (Aphididae: Macrosiphini), which is able to colonize a wide range of host plants belonging to many different families, and transmits numerous plant viruses. Because of its large prevalence, M. persicae has been the target of massive insecticide treatments; consequently, it has evolved several insecticide-resistant mechanisms. In this work, a collection of expressed genes from M. persicae is presented in order to identify putative genes involved in xenobiotic detoxification. After cDNA cloning and sequencing, 959 expressed sequence tags (EST) were annotated. Most sequences matched known genes corresponded to metabolism proteins (26%), ribosomal proteins (23%) and structural proteins (8%). Among them, several sequences corresponded to proteins putatively involved in sensing, degradation or detoxification of plant xenobiotic products.