The Bmtret 1 Gene Family and Its Potential Role in Response to BmNPV Stress in Bombyx mori .

Trehalose is a non-reducing disaccharide and participates in physiological activities such as organ formation, energy metabolism, and stress resistance in insects. The Bmtret 1 gene family is mainly involved in in the sugar metabolism of silkworm. In the present study, phylogenetic analysis divided 21 Bmtret 1 orthologs into three clades. These genes are equally distributed on the nine chromosomes. The cis-elements in the promoter regions of Bmtret 1s indicated the possible function of Bmtret 1s in response to hormones and environmental stimulus. The qPCR analysis showed the significantly different expression levels of Bmtret 1s in different tissues and organs, indicating possible functional divergence. In addition, most Bmtret 1s showed disturbed expression levels in response to silkworm nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV) stresses. Our results provide a clue for further functional dissection of the Tret 1s in Bombyx mori and implicate them as potential regulators of antiviral responses.