RNA-seq of three Spodoptera frugiperda tissues (Midgut, Fat body, Hemocytes), at 2 time-points (8h and 15h) after infestation by entomopathogenic nematodes Steinernema carpocapsae/Xenorhabdus nematophila

Nematodes such as Steinernema carpocapsae are used as organic pesticides because of their ability to prey on live insects. They do so thanks to their symbiotic bacteria, that they release within the hemocoel of insects. In this study we wanted to study how Spodoptera frugiperda, a Lepidoptera pest of crops becoming invasive around the world, defend themselves against the nematodes. We infested S. frugiperda larvae with nematodes and dissected three tissues: the midgut, the fat body and the hemocytes at two time-points: 8 h and 15 h after infestation. We performed single-end RNA-seq on these samples to study the tissue specificity of S. fru response, as well as its dynamic.