Comparison of Arylphorin of Antheraea pernyi with Those of Several Lepidopteran Wild Silkmoths by Western Blot Analysis.

The occurences of proteins relating to Antheraea pernyi arylphorin in haemolymph, fat body, integument, midgut and silkgland of the wild silkmoths, Antheraea yamamai, Antheraea pernyi, Samia cynthia pryeri and Actias gnoma in the 5th larval instar were investigated by immunoblot analysis using mouse polyclonal antibody against A. pernyi arylphorin as probe. In A. yamamai, A. pernyi, S. cynthia pryeri and A. gnoma, the major immunoreactive antigenic proteins with a molecular weight of 80 KDa against the antisera of the A. pernyi arylphorin were clearly observed in the haemolymph, but in the integument, fat body, midgut and silkgland of the corresponding wild silkmoths the presence of the immunoreactive proteins were very variable. These results suggest that the A. pernyi arylphorin has almost same immunological identity with those of the wild silkmoths, A. yamamai, S. cynthia pryeri and A. gnoma though the distribution of the corresponding antigenic arylphorins is different according to the tissues of the wild silkmoths.