Nuclear receptor gene, <em>HR3</em> and <em>βFTZ-F1</em>, involved in molting development, pupation and eclosion in <em>Hyphantria cunea</em> (Drury）

Nuclear receptor genes play a crucial role in insect molting. These genes, found in many insects, produce important proteins that control the expression of other genes, which in turn regulate the molting process in larvae. This study investigates the roles of nuclear receptor genes HcHR3 and HcβFTZ-F1in the molting development, pupation and eclosion of Hyphantria cunea. The expression levels of two gene mRNAs were detected in all developmental stages and various adult tissues. The novel pET28a (+)-HT115 (DE3) RNase III-system was successfully constructed to express HcHR3 and HcβFTZ-F1-dsRNA against H. cunea efficiently. To explore the physiological functions of these genes, they were knocked down in larvae and pupae using dsRNA extracted from bacteria, resulting in a decrease in the expression levels of HcHR3 and HcβFTZ-F1, which were decreased by 13.70% to 99.01%. Molting defects were observed in H. cunea larvae following HcHR3 and HcβFTZ-F1 silencing, with a phenotypic percentage rang..., , # Nuclear receptor gene, *HR3* and *βFTZ-F1*, involved in molting development, pupation and eclosion in *Hyphantria cunea* (Drury) Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.z34tmpgv0](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.z34tmpgv0) ## Description of the data and file structure Temporal and tissue-based expression profiles of *HcHR3* and *HcβFTZ-F1*. Effects of ds*HcHR3* and ds*HcβFTZ-F1* RNAi on larval development and molting. Effects of ds*HcHR3* and ds*HcβFTZ-F1* RNAi on pupation and eclosion. ## Files and variables ### Raw_data_for-Figure2-Relative-expression-level-of-Hchr3-development-stage.xlsx Data brief description: In Figure 2A, we sampled *Hyphantria cunea* individuals at different developmental stages: egg stage, 1st to 7th instar larvae (1–3 days old), female pupae on day 1, male pupae on day 1, female adults on day 1, and male adults on day 1. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was performed to assess changes in *HcHR3* expression levels. Each treatment had three mechanical and three b..., ,