Transcriptomic analysis of the 1st instar, non-molting Bombyx mori mutant (a42)

The life cycle of the holometabolous insect Bombyx mori (Linnaeus), consists of embryo, larva, pupa and adult moth stages, undergoing six molting throughout life. Ecdysone (molting hormone, MH) and juvenile hormone (JH) play important roles in the growth and development of silkworms. The a42 silkworm mutant is recessive and homozygous lethal, with a small, dark body and fails to molt at the end of the first instar larval stage. We compared the gene expression of a42 mutants with normal individuals at the first molting stage to elucidate the physiological influence of the a42 mutation on the growth and development of silkworms.