Antheraea Pernyi

''Antheraea pernyi'', the Chinese (oak) tussar moth, Chinese tasar moth or temperate tussar moth, is a large moth in the family Saturniidae. The species was first described by Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville in 1855. ''Antheraea roylei'' is an extremely close relative, and the present species might actually have evolved from ancestral ''A. roylei'' by chromosome rearrangement.

They are originally from southern China. Used for tussar silk production, they have been distributed more widely across subtropical and tropical Asia. Unlike the domestic silk moth which is entirely dependent on human care, tussah silk moths can survive in the wild if they escape from captivity; small local populations of such feral stock may thus occasionally occur. The colour and quality of the silk depends on the climate and soil.

This is one of the major producers of tussar silk. It was of commercial importance during the Han Dynasty and early Three Kingdoms era, about 200 BC to 250 AD. More recently, the hybridogenic species '' Antheraea × proylei'' is being bred for tussah silk production. It originated from a natural hybrid between male ''A. pernyi'' and ''A. roylei'' females, F1 females of which were backcrossed to ''A. pernyi'' males. For reasons unknown, it is a case of paternal mtDNA transmission: the mitochondrial genome, normally inherited from the mother only in sexually reproducing organisms, is almost identical to that of the present species.

This silkworm is raised in China for its silk. It is referred to as tussah, Chinese tussah, oak tussah, or temperate tussah. It is the source of tussah spinning fiber that is used in the West. It is a relative of the tropical tussah silk moth, '' Antheraea paphia'' of India, and also related to '' Antheraea polyphemus'', the American polyphemus silk moth. In China, they are fed on plantations of specially trimmed oak trees on the hillsides.

Immune system

The immune responses of ''A. pernyi'' to bacterial infection have been analysed based on injection by '' Escherichia coli'' D31. Cecropin B and D, hemolin, attacin and lysozyme were detected in the hemolymph. Also, injection of ''E. coli'' led to the discovery of a 380-kDa lectin with affinity to galactose and resulted in an increase of hemagglutinating activity. ''A. pernyi'' has been used in research on virus defence in insects. It was discovered that hemolin was induced after injection of baculovirus, but also by double-stranded RNA.

Gallery

Image:Antheraea pernyi ova sjh.jpg, Eggs one day before hatching
Image:Antheraea pernyi 1st instar 1 sjh.jpg, First- instar caterpillars
Image:Antheraea pernyi 2nd instar 10 sjh.jpg, Second-instar caterpillar
Image:Antheraea pernyi 3rd instar 3 sjh.jpg, Third-instar caterpillar
Image:Antheraea pernyi 4th instar 2 sjh.jpg, Fourth-instar caterpillar
Image:Antheraea pernyi 5th instar 1 sjh.jpg, Fifth-instar caterpillars
Image:Antheraea pernyi 6th instar 6 sjh.JPG, Sixth-instar caterpillar
Image:Antheraea pernyi 6th instar 5 sjh.JPG, Sixth-instar caterpillar

References

* North-Szigetváry, L. (1894): "The Japanese and Chinese Oak-Silk Spinner: Their Life and Cultivation (''Attacus Jama-mâi'' and ''Bombyx Pernyi'')." L. North-Szigetváry, of Newchwang. ''The Journal of the Manchester Geographical Society''. 1894. Vol. 10. Nos. 4–6 April to June, pp. 183–193.

Supplementary figure 1 (JPG)


Supplementary figure 2 (JPG)


Supplementary figure 3 (JPG)

External links

Warning: Many images, may require a lot of bandwidth
* http://www.cdfd.org.in/wildsilkbase/info_moths.php

{{Taxonbar , from=Q1074174

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Moths of Asia
Sericulture
South China
Insects of Southeast Asia
Moths of Japan
Moths of New Zealand
Moths described in 1855
Domesticated animals