--- - "\nA small heat shock protein 19.1 gene was involved in the innate immunity and thermal stress response of the Chinese oak silkworm, Antheraea pernyi\n\n\n\n\n\nAbstract\nSmall heat shock proteins (sHSPs) are a class of highly conserved proteins that are ubiquitously found in all types of organisms, from prokaryotes to eukaryotes. In the current study, we identified and characterized the full‐length cDNA encoding sHSP 19.1 from the oak silkworm, \nAntheraea pernyi. Ap‐sHSP is 510 bp in length, and encodes a protein of 169 amino acid residues. The protein contains conserved domains found in insect sHSPs, and it belongs to the \nα‐crystallin‐HSPs_p23‐like superfamily. Recombinant Ap‐sHSP was expressed in \nEscherichia coli cells, and a rabbit anti‐Ap‐sHSP 19.1 antibody was generated to confirm the biological functions of \nAp‐sHSP 19.1 in \nA. pernyi. Real‐time polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis revealed that \nAp‐sHSP 19.1 expression was highest in the fat body, followed by the midgut, and the lowest expression was found in the Malpighian tubule. \nAp‐sHSP 19.1 transcript expression was significantly induced following challenge with microbial pathogens. In addition, the expression of \nAp‐sHSP 19.1 was strongly induced after heat shock. These results suggest that \nAp‐sHSP 19.1 plays a crucial role in immune responses and thermal tolerance in \nA. pernyi." - 'Archives of Insect Biochemistry and Physiology, Volume 99, Issue 4, December 2018. '