The Distribution of the Oceanic Sea Skaters, <i>Halobates</i>inside and outside the <i>Kuroshio</i>

The purpose of this study was to clarify the distribution of oceanic Halobates in the area of the Kuroshio flowing near the southern shore in the direction of 100° - 120°, and also to compare the population density of Halobates between the area within or outside the area of the Kuroshio and also among seasons. This study was carried out during 8 cruises by R/V TANSEIMARU. The Kuroshio area south of the southern Japan coast (30°00'N - 35°00'N, 130°25'E - 141°04'E) was dominated by H. sericeus, and the averaged population-density of this species was significantly higher inside the Kuroshio than outside this current. On the Kuroshio, H. sericeus was dominant with the population density of 16,396.4 km-2 ± 66,138.4 [26] (Mean ± SD [n]), whereas the density of H. germanus was 8,581.9 km-2 ± 24,443.2 [26]. The two oceanic sea skaters, H. sericeusand H. germanus showed significant seasonal variation in the population density, with significantly higher density in October than other months, whereas there was no such significant October peak in the cosmopolitan oceanic sea skater, H. micans. The results of this study may suggest that H. sericeus could use the Kuroshio as a transportation tool to distribute a wide latitude area of from 10°N to 40°N in the western tropical, subtropical and temperate area in the Pacific Ocean.

Rescue of white egg 1 mutant by introduction of the wildtype Bombyx kynurenine 3-monooxygenase gene

In silkworms, the white egg 1 （w-1） mutant, which is characterized by white eyes and white eggs, is deficient in Bombyx kynurenine 3-monooxygenase （KMO） activity. To investigate whether the w-1 mutant phenotype is rescued by introducing the wild-type KMO gene, we constructed transgenic silkworms with the wild-type Bombyx KMO gene under the control of either the cytoplasmic actin gene promoter （A3KMO） or the native KMO gene promoter （KKMO）. We created two transgenic lines with A3KMO and one line with KKMO constructs. The eyes of adults in these lines were brown, and the eggs laid by the transgenic females were also brown. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction（RT-PCR） analysis showed that the A3KMO silkworm lines expressed the transcript in the mid-gut, fat bodies, and Malpighian tubules. The KKMO line expressed the transcript only in the fat bodies and Malpighian tubules. The intensity of eye and egg color in the transgenic lines was proportional to the KMO expression level. Interestingly, transgenic larvae with the A3KMO construct had a light brown larval cuticle, but the KKMO line did not. These results indicate that the wild-type KMO gene can be used as a marker gene for visually screening transgenic silkworms.

Expression of the Japanese oak silkworm Antheraea yamamai fibroin gene in the domesticated silkworm Bombyx mori

To understand the evolutionary conservation ofthe gene expression mechanism and secretion machinery between Antheraea and Bombyx fibroins, we introduced the genomic A. yamamai fibroin gene into the domesticated silkworm, B. mori. The spliced A. yamamai fibroin mRNA appeared only in the posterior region of the silk gland of the transgenic silkworm, suggesting that the functions of the fibroin promoter region and the splicing machinery are conserved between these two species. The A. yamarnai fibroin protein was detected in the lumen of the silk gland of the transgenic silkworm, albeit at lower levels compared with the B. mori-type fibroin. We found a strong degeneration of the posterior region of the silk gland of the transgenic silkworm. As a result, the cocoon shell weight was much lower in the transgenic silkworm than in the non-transgenic line. These results indicate that the promoter function and splicing machinery are well conserved between A. yamamai and B. mori but that the secretion mechanism of fibroin is diversified between the two.