G-quadruplex structure in plants and insects and potential applications in pest control

The guanine-enriched regions of nucleic acids can adopt four-stranded G-quadruplex structures (G4s). Considerable evidence reveals that predicted G4-forming sequences prevalently exist in the genomes of various organisms. The abundant G4 formation linked G4s to fundamental biological processes such as transcription, replication, translation and telomere protection. G4s are also known to be closely associated with many diseases, especially cancer. However, an increasing number of studies have investigated the critical roles of G4s in the development of plants and insects. In this review, we discuss the characteristics of the distribution and regulation of G4s and their biological roles in plants and insects, as well as the potential application of G4s as molecular targets in pest control.