Enzymes for ecdysteroid biosynthesis: their biological functions in insects and beyond

Figures & data

Fig. 1. The ecdysteroid biosynthesis pathway and ecdysteroidogenic enzymes in insects.

Table 1. Enzymes for ecdysteroid biosynthesis.

Enzyme name	Synonym	Genome annotation (in D. melanogaster)	Enzyme type	Substrate	Orthologs outside Drosophilidae^d	Essential for embryos^e	References^f
Neverland	–	CG40050	Rieske	Cholesterol Lathosterol^b	YES	NO?	^28,29,57^)
Non-molting glossy/Shroud	–	CG12068	SDR^a	n.d^c	YES	YES	^40^)
CYP6T3	CYP6T3	CG8457	P450	n.d.^c	NO	?	^39^)
Spook	CYP307A1	CG10594	P450	n.d.^c	YES	YES	^37,38^)
Spookier	CYP307A2	CG41624	P450	n.d.^c	NO	NO?	^38^)
Phantom	CYP306A1	CG6578	P450	5β-Ketodiol	YES	YES	^30,31^)
Disembodied	CYP302A1	CG12028	P450	5β-Ketotriol	YES	YES	^32,33^)
Shadow	CYP315A1	CG14728	P450	2-Deoxy ecdysone	YES	YES	^33^)
Shade	CYP314A1	CG13478	P450	Ecdysone	YES	YES	^23^)
(Dare)	–	CG12390	Adrenodoxin reductase	–	–	?	^36^)

^a SDR = short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase.

^b Drosophila pachea Neverland can convert lathosterol, but not cholesterol, to 7-dehydrocholesterol.

^c n.d. = not determined; the substrate should be in the “Black Box.”

^d “YES” means that orthologs of the gene are found in organisms other than Drosophilidae.

^e “YES” means that the gene is essential for ecdysteroid biosynthesis during embryogenesis and thus is classified as a Halloween gene.

^f Research articles that first described a gene, mutant and/or biochemical property of each enzyme.

Fig. 2. Rough phylogenetic relationships of animals and unicellular ciliates that are described in this review. Popular names and genus names of these organisms are shown in underline and italics, respectively.

Fig. 3. The dafachronic acid biosynthesis pathway and responsible biosynthetic enzymes in the nematode C. elegans.

Table 2. Enzymes for dafachronic acid biosynthesis.

Enzyme name	Synonym	Genome annotation (in C. elegans)	Enzyme type	Substrate	Counterparts of insects	References^c
DAF-36	–	C12D8.5	Rieske	Cholesterol	Neverland	^29,65,67^)
DHS-16	–	C10F3.2	SDR^a	Lathosterol	–	^69^)
HSD-1	–	Y6B3B.11	3βHSD	n.d.^b	–	^70^)
DAF-9	CYP22A1	T13C5.1	P450	4-Cholesten-3-one, Lathosterone	–	^62,68^)
(EMB-8)	–	K10D2.6	P450 reductase	–	–	^69^)

^a SDR = short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase.

^b n.d. = not determined.

^c Research articles that first described a gene, mutant and/or biochemical property of each enzyme.

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