Changes in the Fatty Acid Amide Levels and the Expression of Three Insect Arylalkylamine-N-acyltransferases in the Different Life Stages of Bombyx mori
Ryan L. Anderson, Dylan J. Wallis, Suzeeta Bhandari, Alexandria C. Musick, Sydney Innes, and David J. Merkler

Abstract
The goal of the project detailed herein is to track changes in transcript levels of three insect arylalkylamine-N-acyltransferases (iAANATs) during the life cycle of the domesticated silkworm (Bombyx mori). The purpose being to uncover key differences in the expression of these iAANATs at different life stages of the insect. Furthermore, knowing these enzymes are capable of biosynthesizing specific fatty acid amides in vitro, we wanted to characterize and quantify a panel of such lipids via liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-QToF-MS) from purified lipid extracts of each stage of B. mori life. Our results show differences in expression for these separate iAANATs as well as a panel of fatty acid amides at different time points in the life cycle of the silkworm. The combination of iAANAT expression and fatty acid amide data provide insight on how the fatty acid amides are being synthesized in vivo.

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