Insect Hormones and their Biochemical Regulation: An Overview of Current Research

Abstract

The most diverse animal group is insects and they depend on a complex but a small network of the endocrine system to control their growth, reproduction, metabolism and behavior. Among major insect hormones, juvenile hormones (JHs), ecdysteroids, insulin-like peptides (ILPs), and neuropeptides are triggered in novel relationships, which guarantee physiological plasticity according to internal and external signals. Molecular biology and technology, such as CRISPR-mediated genome editing, transcriptomics, and metabolomics, have shown existing but plastic elements of endocrine regulation, and have demonstrated new actions of enzymes, microRNA, and epigenetics improving endocrine responses. This review is a synthesis of existing information on the biosynthesis of lipid hormones, receptor-mediated transcriptional regulation, neuropeptide regulation of molting and reproduction, ILP signaling between nutrition and growth, and cross-talk between endocrine signaling. Photoperiod, temperature, diet and exposure to pesticides prove to reform hormone functioning and frequently trigger diapause or different life-history approaches. Applied viewpoints focus on utilizing insect growth regulators (IGRs), synthetic hormone analogs, and botanicals including neem powders in the management of pests, and new strategies centered on ILP and neuropathway-neuropathway-neuropathway. Notably, hormonal knowledge can also be optimal in pollinators and agronomy. Although this has improved a lot, the gaps in knowledge of tissue-specific ILP functions, embryonic JH roles as well as functional characterization of newly identified neuropeptides still exist. The key ways to move into the future are integrative approaches to multi-omics, computational modeling and eco-endocrine approaches. All told and said, the biochemical regulation of insect hormones can be of invaluable use in the basics of entomology and the applied practices of agriculture, biological preservation policies, and climatic-stable pest control.