Molecular Identification of the Glutaredoxin 5 Gene That Plays Important Roles in Antioxidant Defense in Arma chinensis (Fallou)

Glutaredoxin (Grx) is a group of redox enzymes that control reactive oxygen species (ROS), traditionally defined as redox regulators. Recent research suggested that members of the family may be involved in more biological processes than previously thought. Therefore, we cloned the gene and identified its role in diapause. Sequence analysis revealed the ORF of was 432 bp, encoding 143 amino acids, which was consistent with the homologous sequence of . RT-qPCR results showed that expression was the highest in the head, and compared with non-diapause conditions, diapause conditions significantly increased the expression of in the developmental stages. Further, we found that 15 °C low-temperature stress significantly induced expression, and the expression of antioxidant enzyme genes and were significantly increased after knockdown. Following silencing, there was a considerable rise in the levels of VC content, CAT activity, and hydrogen peroxide content, indicating that was exposed to high levels of reactive oxygen species. These results suggested that the gene may play a key role in antioxidant defense.