Advances in the Molecular Target for Insecticides ofNicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors

Insect nicotinic acetylcholine receptors(nAChRs)are molecular targets of insecticides, they widely expressed in the central nervous system.The natural subunit composition of nAChRs is not yet entirely clear.Coexpression of any Drosophila a subunit with a vertebrate β subunit constitutes the best available heterologous expression model at present,but still need to provide new robust heterologous expression research tool.Some important nACh receptor-associated proteins effect the robust expression in cell lines.Insect nACh receptor can be modulated by intracellular phosphorylation mechanisms,which offers a new approach to studying insect nACh receptor pharmacology.Amino acids within the subunits have a role in the selectivity of neonicotinoids for insect nACh receptor.Researching on brown planthopper found a mutation conferring target-site resistance to imidacloprid,this study provides direct evidence for target insensitivity to neonicotinoid insecticide.The latest progress on the molecular diversity,functional expression,intracellular regulation mechanisms,selectivity of insecticides for insect nAChRs and target resistance mechanisms were reviewed.