Tenebrio molitor amylase

[Joseph G. Kunkel]

Denis,
Most of what I have learned about insect amylase I learned from Winefred
W. Doane.  One of her latest papers on amylase is listed below.

Prog Clin Biol Res 1990;344:19-48 
Molecular genetics of a three-gene cluster in the Amy region of
Drosophila.
Doane WW, Thompson DB, Norman RA, Hawley SA
Department of Zoology, Arizona State University, Tempe 85287-1501. 

You can learn more about the Amy gene's expression from her earlier
papers which you can reach by following her papers back in time through
her own bibliographies at the end of her later papers.

Joe

Denis LeBel wrote:
> 
> I have a question about the cellular origin of the Tenebrio amylase. I
> hope there is someone who knows about arthropod gastro-intestinal
> physiology. If nobody could help me directly in this question, I would very
> much appreciate a good reference book or the name of an entomologist that
> could help me. Here are the questions:
> 
> 1) Can amylase secretion of the mealworm gut cells be stimulated by a
> neurohormonal transmitter of some sort?
> 
> 2) Is amylase stocked inside gut cells in the form of granules for example,
> ready to be secreted when starch has to be digested, in a similar way as the
> mammalian pancreatic zymogen granule? The alternative would be secretion
> without accumulation in the cell, immediately after biosynthesis. Then the
> biosynthesis of amylase would be directly induced by the intake of starch,
> resulting in an increased secretion.
> 
> Thanks to anyone with some clues.
> 
> Note: Please send me a copy of your answer via email.

-- 
--------------------
Joseph G. Kunkel, Professor
Biology Department             joe at bio.umass.edu
University of Massachusetts    http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/kunkel
Amherst MA 01003