We previously cloned a cDNA for sorbitol dehydrogenase (SDH1) from Bombyx mori. In the present study
we cloned two additional cDNAs encoding SDHs (designated as SDH2a and SDH2b). The amino acid
sequences of SDH2ab were almost the same and had higher similarity to the SDHs of other organisms
than to B. mori SDH1. The SDH2ab and SDH1genes were located in tandem within about 40 kbp on
chromosome 21. SDH2ab mRNAs increased after exposing diapause eggs to 5 C for 40 days, beginning at
2 days post-oviposition, to break diapause. However, they were at very low levels in diapausing eggs
incubated at 25 C continuously from oviposition. These changes in expression pattern of SDH2ab mRNA
were almost the same as that of SDH1 mRNA. To understand whether SDH1 and SDH2 were responsible
for the SDH activity seen in diapause eggs exposed to 5 C for more than 60 days, we expressed a Histagged
SDH2a fusion protein in Escherichia coli and examined its enzymatic parameters. The maximum
activity of SDH2a observed at pH 8.4w9.0, and the Km value for sorbitol was 12.6 mM, similar to the
kinetic properties of other SDHs. Due to the significantly higher similarity between SDH2a and b, they
were thought to have similar kinetic properties. Therefore, we purified SDH from B. mori diapauseterminated
eggs exposed to 5 C for 300 days which showed higher SDH activity using two-step affinity
chromatography. The highly purified SDH showed a higher Kmvalue (125 mM) for sorbitol, being similar
to the value (136 mM) determined previously from Eadie-Hofstee plots using egg crude extract as an
enzyme source; additionally, the plots showed one slope indicating one Km value. Moreover, in silico
analysis indicated that no SDH genes other than SDH1 and 2ab are present in B. mori genomic DNA. These
results suggest that SDH1 activity may be responsible for the majority of the increased SDH activity seen
in diapause eggs after acclimation to 5 C rather than SDH2ab. Further, the relative sequence divergence
among these genes is consistent with the idea/hypothesis that the original SDH gene was first duplicated
into SDH1 and SDH2, and then SDH2 was duplicated into the SDH2a and SDH2b genes.