Abstract:In order to understand the metabolic activities of esterases in Helicoverpa armigera toward organophosphorus (OPs) and pyrethroid insecticides, the catalytic activities of two esterases (001F and 001G) and their mutants (mutated at positions A127 and F238) toward three kinds of insecticides (i.e., dimethyl- and diethyl- phosphates (dMUP and dECP) and esfenvalerate (2S, αS) ) were measured with fluorometric and HPLC assays. The results showed the enzymatic constants (kcat) of 001F and 001G for OPs were between 2.0 × 10-3/min and 5.2 × 10-3/min, and 001G also had some metabolic activities toward esfenvalerate (10.19 μmol·min-1·μmol-1). The mutants of 001F showed enhanced activities for OPs, the kcat values of both 001FA127D and 001FF238L for dMUP (4.5×10-3 /min and 6.1×10-3/min respectively) were at least 2-fold higher than that of the wild type enzyme. However, the mutants of 001G obviously reduced the activities against dECP, and only 001GF238L slightly improved the metabolic activities against dMUP. Among the mutants, the activity of 001FA127D toward esfenvalerate resembled its wild type enzyme, but the activity of 001GF238L toward esfenvalerate was only about half that of its wild type enzyme, and all others mutants showed undetectable activities. The 001F and 001G had metabolic activities against OPs and pyrethroids, and mutation at both positions A127 and F238 in esterases had marked effects on their catalytic activities.