Identification of the key stages for sex determination in the silkworm, Bombyx mori

In general, the master switch gene for sex determination is expressed for a limited period during the early embryonic stage. To increase our understanding of the sex determination mechanism in Bombyx mori, it is important to understand when sex determination takes place. To examine the key stages for sex determination in this insect, we focused on the expression patterns of Bmdsx (a double-switch gene in the sex determination cascade of B. mori) and BmIMP (a gene expressed specifically in males involved in male-specific splicing of Bmdsx). Reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR) analysis revealed that male-type Bmdsx expression was observed in females at 27 and 29 h after oviposition (hao), and finally disappeared at 32 hao. Moreover, BmIMP mRNA was also expressed in these females, and its expression level was comparable to that of the male-type Bmdsx mRNA. These results demonstrated that female embryos before 32 hao can show male-type expression of Bmdsx and BmIMP, suggesting that sex determination occurs between 29 and 32 hao, which correspond to the developmental stages from the head lobe differentiation to spoon-shaped embryo stages. This also suggests that the master switch gene for sex determination of B. mori is expressed in females during this period and represses the male-specific mode of expression in sex-determining genes.