BioMed Central, BMC Genomics, 1(16), 2015
DOI: 10.1186/s12864-015-2121-0
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Citation: Oppert, B., Guedes, R. N. C., Aikins, M. J., Perkin, L., Chen, Z., Phillips, T. W., . . . Arthur, F. (2015). Genes related to mitochondrial functions are differentially expressed in phosphine-resistant and -susceptible Tribolium castaneum. Bmc Genomics, 16, 10. doi:10.1186/s12864-015-2121-0 ; Background: Phosphine is a valuable fumigant to control pest populations in stored grains and grain products. However, recent studies indicate a substantial increase in phosphine resistance in stored product pests worldwide. Results: To understand the molecular bases of phosphine resistance in insects, we used RNA-Seq to compare gene expression in phosphine-resistant and susceptible laboratory populations of the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum. Each population was evaluated as either phosphine-exposed or no phosphine (untreated controls) in triplicate biological replicates (12 samples total). Pairwise analysis indicated there were eight genes differentially expressed between susceptible and resistant insects not exposed to phosphine (i.e., basal expression) or those exposed to phopshine (>8-fold expression and 90 % C.I.). However, 214 genes were differentially expressed among all four treatment groups at a statistically significant level (ANOVA, p