The effect of chlorantraniliprole on the transcriptomic profile of Spodoptera frugiperda : a typical case analysis for the response of a newly invaded pest to an old insecticide

Background Chlorantraniliprole is a diamide insecticide widely used in China over the last 15 years. The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda , newly invaded China in 2019. The response of FAW to chlorantraniliprole deserves more attention, in the context of many destructive lepidopteran species are resistant to diamide insecticides and the patent on core chemical of chlorantraniliprole in China expired in August 2022. Methods and results This study investigated the response profile in larvae under chlorantraniliprole-induced (LC 50 ) stress using methods of bioassay, RNA-Seq and qPCR. We observed growth inhibition and lethal effects in FAW larvae, but at a relatively high LC 50 value compared to other several pests. Additionally, under chlorantraniliprole-induced stress, 3309 unigenes were found to be differentially expressed genes. The impacted genes included 137 encoding for detoxification enzymes, 29 encoding for cuticle proteins, and 20 key enzymes involved in the chitin metabolism, which all associated with metabolic resistance. Finally, we obtained the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of two RyR genes, which are the target proteins for chlorantraniliprole. We also investigated the causes of the high LC 50 value in our FAW, which possibly related to the stabilized 4743 M on SNP frequency of RyR. These findings documented the genetic background of RyR of FAW and indicated that application of chlorantraniliprole has a high risk of controlling FAW in China. Conclusion In brief, our results provide a better understanding of the mechanisms of chlorantraniliprole toxicity and detoxification in FAW, and will aid in monitoring the development of resistant strains for a newly pest to an old insecticide.