A Palmitonyl Conjugate of an Insect Pentapeptide Causes Growth Arrest in Mammalian Cells and Mimics the Action of Diapause Hormone

Abstract

In many animals, as well as in insects, diapause or growth arrest is an essential feature of the life cycle. However, diapause features and their mechanisms are surely diversified, thus it may be difficult to achieve an integrated understanding. We found that an insect pentapeptide called Yamamarin and conjugated to palmitic acid (C16-DILRG-NH₂) causes reversible growth arrest in the rat hepatoma cells and inhibits embryonic development in the silkworm, Bombyx mori. The latter effect resembles action of the structurally unrelated diapause hormone, a tetraeicosapeptide released under certain environmental conditions from the central nervous system of B. mori. Despite different incidence in mammalian cells and insects, we here propose that C16-DILRG-NH₂ may open up new vistas in the development of biophamaceuticals and pest management.