Abstract: Odor chemically mediates Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) mating and oviposition behaviors, and odorant-binding protein (OBP) on the moth antenna is one of the important kinds of proteins involved in chemical communication with the environment. In this study the primers were designed according to the sequence of S. litura GOBP1 (GenBank accession no. EF159978) reported before, and the tissue expression pattern of GOBP1 in the moth was analyzed by using RT-PCR technology. The results showed that GOBP1 is an antennal-specific protein and expresses only in the antennae of S. litura. The fragments of GOBP1 gene were also cloned, sequenced and blasted against GenBank. The further experiments of localization of GOBP1’s mRNA by in situ hybridization methods revealed that the GOBP1 specifically express in the tissue of moth antenna, and their transcripts were more widely distributed in the cells bordering of the antennal surfaces where the chemosensory hairs are located. The results suggest that GOBP1 plays crucial roles in moth olfaction recognition. Our findings provide the basis for the further study on the function of GOBP1 and its interaction with spatial localization of other proteins.

Key words: Spodoptera litura, general odorant binding protein (GOBP), localization of gene expression, in situ hybridization