Sage controls silk gland development by regulating Dfd in Bombyx mori

Silk gland is an organ that produces and secretes silk proteins. The development of the silk gland is essential for high silk production yield and silk quality. Although Sage reportedly plays a pivotal role in embryonic silk gland development, the mechanism underlying its action remains unclear. Our study aimed to determine the genes downstream of Sage through which it regulates the development of the silk gland. After chromatin immunoprecipitation and sequencing, Dfd was identified as a downstream target gene of Sage and it was confirmed that Sage could inhibit Dfd expression by competing with SGF1. When Dfd was knocked down through RNA interference (RNAi), the number of cells in the middle silk gland decreased, and the posterior silk gland was straightened. Simultaneously, the expression of Ser1 and silk fibroin genes was no longer strictly regional. These changes eventually led to an alteration in the composition of the Dfd RNAi cocoon. In conclusion, our research contributes to a deeper understanding of the development of silk glands. [Display omitted] •The Bombyx mori Deformed (Dfd) gene acts downstream of Sage.•Dfd is negatively regulated by Sage through an interaction with SGF1.•Dfd knockdown leads to decreased cell numbers in the silk glands.•Dfd knockdown results in abnormal silk gland morphology and function.