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Journals / Biyolojik Çeşitlilik ve Koruma / 2026 / Volume: 19 Issue: 2

Detection and structural mapping of potential fucosyltransferases motif sequences in some insect species

Sadiye Oylum(EGE UNIVERSITY, INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE)0009-0003-4198-1984
Ceren Ersoy(EGE UNIVERSITY, INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE)0000-0002-6408-2987
Savaş İzzetoğlu(EGE UNIVERSITY, FACULTY OF SCIENCE)0000-0002-1546-1083
Gamze Turgay İzzetoğlu(EGE ÜNİVERSİTESİ, FEN FAKÜLTESİ, BİYOLOJİ BÖLÜMÜ, ZOOLOJİ ANABİLİM DALI)0000-0001-9828-2402
Pages
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Publication Date
2026-05-31
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

While the similarities of fucosyltransferase motifs in insects and mammals indicate that they may be orthologous genes in terms of evolution, it is also an indication that new developmental and evolutionary studies will be conducted on this subject.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

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Objective & Hypothesis:Purpose: Fucosyltransferases (FucTs) catalyze the transfer (fucosylation) of α-L-fucose from GDP-Fuc onto N- and O-linked glycans, free oligosaccharides, or lipids or directly onto proteins.
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Key Findings & Data:In mammals, 13 fucosyltransferase gene families (FUT) have been identified, including FUT 1-11, POFUT1 (Protein O-fucosyltransferase 1) and POFUT2 (Protein O-fucosyltransferase 2) Despite the existing studies in the literature, the diversity of many fucosyltransferases in organisms remains unknown.
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Conclusion & Impact:While the similarities of fucosyltransferase motifs in insects and mammals indicate that they may be orthologous genes in terms of evolution, it is also an indication that new developmental and evolutionary studies will be conducted on this subject.
🔬Design:Modeling & Simulation
📍Scope:Comprehensive Sample
⚙️Variables:Motif scanning · 3D protein model · fucosyltransferases

Abstract

Purpose: Fucosyltransferases (FucTs) catalyze the transfer (fucosylation) of α-L-fucose from GDP-Fuc onto N- and O-linked glycans, free oligosaccharides, or lipids or directly onto proteins. In mammals, 13 fucosyltransferase gene families (FUT) have been identified, including FUT 1-11, POFUT1 (Protein O-fucosyltransferase 1) and POFUT2 (Protein O-fucosyltransferase 2) Despite the existing studies in the literature, the diversity of many fucosyltransferases in organisms remains unknown. In insects, there are few studies on fucosyltransferase and FUT types are not characterized by species. Method: Fucosyltransferase motif sequences were determined from the transcriptomes (all mRNA sequences) obtained from the databases of 5 insects (Bombyx mori, Callosobruchus maculatus, Galleria mellonella, Manduca sexta, Myzus persicae) with known genomes through databases, and putative fucosyltransferase sequences in insects were determined with computational analysis (Clustal Omega, Prosite ve MEME-Suite/FIMO). Then, the similarities between the three-dimensional protein structures of the mammalian fucosyltransferase enzymes were revealed using Swiss-Model, AlphaFold and pyMOL databases. Findings: Based on motif and three-dimensional structure comparison regions, all 13 fucosyltransferases were identified in Callosobruchus maculatus, FucT1 and FucT9 in Galleria mellonella, FucT1, FucT4, FucT5, FucT8, and FucT11 in Manduca sexta, FucT2, FucT3, FucT5, FucT6, FucT7, FucT9, FucT10, and FucT11 in Myzus persicae, and FucT1, FucT3, FucT5, FucT6, and FucT9 motifs were characterized in Bombyx mori. Conclusion: This information provides guidance for continuing studies on fucosyltransferases in invertebrates. New sequences for the fucosyltransferase enzyme will be revealed as the genome of determined insects is studied. While the similarities of fucosyltransferase motifs in insects and mammals indicate that they may be orthologous genes in terms of evolution, it is also an indication that new developmental and evolutionary studies will be conducted on this subject.

Özet

Amaç: Fukoziltransferazlar (FucTs), GDP-Fukoz (GDP-Fuc)’tan α-L-fukozun N- ve O-bağlı glikanlara, serbest oligosakkaritlere veya lipitlere ya da doğrudan proteinlere aktarılmasını (fukozilasyon) katalizler. Memelilerde, FUT1–11, POFUT1 (Protein O-fukoziltransferaz 1) ve POFUT2 (Protein O-fukoziltransferaz 2) dahil olmak üzere 13 fukoziltransferaz gen ailesi (FUT) tanımlanmıştır. Literatürde mevcut çalışmalar bulunmasına rağmen, birçok organizmada fukoziltransferazların çeşitliliği hâlâ tam olarak bilinmemektedir. Böceklerde ise fukoziltransferazlar üzerine yapılan çalışmalar oldukça sınırlıdır ve FUT tipleri tür bazında henüz karakterize edilmemiştir. Metot: Genomları bilinen 5 böceğin (Bombyx mori, Callosobruchus maculatus, Galleria mellonella, Manduca sexta, Myzus persicae) veri tabanlarından elde edilen transkriptomlarından (tüm mRNA dizileri) fukoziltransferaz motif dizileri veri tabanları (Clustal Omega, Prosite ve MEME-Suite/FIMO) aracılığıyla tespit edilerek böceklerdeki olası fukoziltransferazlar belirlenmiştir. Daha sonra memelilerdeki fukoziltransferaz enzimlerinin üç boyutlu protein yapıları arasındaki benzerlikler Swiss-Model, AlphaFold ve pyMOL veri tabanları kullanılarak ortaya konulmuştur. Bulgular: Motif ve üç boyutlu yapı karşılaştırma bölgelerine göre, Callosobruchus maculatus türünde 13 fukoziltransferazın tümü bulunurken, Galleria mellonella türünde FucT1 ve FucT9, Manduca sexta türünde FucT1, FucT4, FucT5, FucT8 ve FucT11, Myzus persicae türünde FucT2, FucT3, FucT5, FucT6, FucT7, FucT9, FucT10 ve FucT11, Bombyx mori türünde FucT1, FucT3, FucT5, FucT6 ve FucT9 motifleri karakterize edilmiştir. Tartışma: Bu çalışma, omurgasızlarda fukoziltransferazlar üzerine yapılacak ilerleyen çalışmalar için yol gösterici özellik taşımaktadır. Genomu belirlenen böceklerle çalışıldıkça fukoziltransferaz enzimi için yeni diziler ortaya çıkarılacaktır. Böcekler ve memelilerdeki fukoziltransferaz motiflerinin benzerlikleri, bu genlerin evrimsel açıdan ortolog genler olabileceğine işaret ederken, ayrıca bu konuda gelişimsel ve evrimsel yeni çalışmaların yapılacağının göstergesidir.

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Cite This Article

Oylum, S., Ersoy, C., İzzetoğlu, S., İzzetoğlu, G. T. (2026). Detection and structural mapping of potential fucosyltransferases motif sequences in some insect species. Biyolojik Çeşitlilik ve Koruma, Volume: 19 Issue: 2. https://doi.org/10.46309/biodicon.2026.1904444

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