Novel genomic microsatellite markers for genetic population and diversity studies of tropical scalloped spiny lobster (Panulirus homarus) and their potential application in related Panulirus species

Fourteen polymorphic microsatellites with perfect di-, tri-, and tetra-nucleotide repeats were identified for Panulirus homarus using Roche 454 whole-genome sequencing method. Microsatellites were efficiently co-amplified in four multiplexes and a singleplex, providing consistent and easily interpretable genotypes. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 2 to 11 with the observed and expected heterozygosity ranging between 0.000-0.532 and 0.031-0.836, respectively. A significant deviation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was observed for majority of the loci, probably due to homozygote excess. Genetic linkage disequilibrium analysis between all the possible pairs of the loci showed significant departure from the null hypothesis in the loci pairs Pho-G11-Pho-G33 and Pho-G33-Pho-G57. High success in primer cross-species amplification of these microsatellite markers indicates their utility for genetic studies of different Panulirus species.

Chromosomal-Level Assembly of the Asian Seabass Genome Using Long Sequence Reads and Multi-layered Scaffolding

We report here the ~670 Mb genome assembly of the Asian seabass (Lates calcarifer), a tropical marine teleost. We used long-read sequencing augmented by transcriptomics, optical and genetic mapping along with shared synteny from closely related fish species to derive a chromosome-level assembly with a contig N50 size over 1 Mb and scaffold N50 size over 25 Mb that span ~90% of the genome. The population structure of L. calcarifer species complex was analyzed by re-sequencing 61 individuals representing various regions across the species' native range. SNP analyses identified high levels of genetic diversity and confirmed earlier indications of a population stratification comprising three clades with signs of admixture apparent in the South-East Asian population. The quality of the Asian seabass genome assembly far exceeds that of any other fish species, and will serve as a new standard for fish genomics.

Isolation, characterization, and multiplexing of novel microsatellite markers for the tropical scalloped spiny lobster (Panulirus homarus)

Of the various spiny lobster species in the tropical and subtropical Indo-West Pacific region, the tropical scalloped spiny lobster (Panulirus homarus) supports one of the most commercially valuable fishery resources in many coastal African and Asian countries. The last decade has witnessed a serious decline in the wild populations of this species. Knowledge of the genetic basis of spiny lobster population structure is a prerequisite to achieve a sustainable fisheries management for this species. Here, we describe 13 novel polymorphic microsatellite markers developed for P. homarus, using a cross-species primer design strategy based on P. ornatus Roche 454 shot-gun generated sequencing. Microsatellite polymorphisms were assessed in 96 unrelated P. homarus individuals of a natural population, with the number of alleles per locus varying from 2 to 14, the observed and expected heterozygosity from 0.00 to 0.78 and from 0.03 to 0.79, respectively, and with only four loci (Pho-G27, Pho-G32, Pho-G36, and Pho-G58) deviating from Hardy- Weinberg equilibrium. Genetic linkage disequilibrium analysis between all pairs of the loci showed significant departure from the null hypothesis between loci Pho-G22 - Pho-G30, and Pho-G30 - Pho-G35. The successful cross amplification of these microsatellites highlights the potential of the developed microsatellites for future population genetic research within the different Panulirus species.

Fishing for divergence in a sea of connectivity: The utility of ddRADseq genotyping in a marine invertebrate, the black-lip pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera

Population genomic investigations on highly dispersive marine organisms typically require thousands of genome-wide SNP loci to resolve fine-scale population structure and detect signatures of selection. This information is important for species conservation efforts and stock management in both wild and captive populations, as well as genome mapping and genome wide association studies. Double digest Restriction site-Associated DNA Sequencing (ddRADseq) is a recent tool for delivering genome wide SNPs for non-model organisms. However, its application to marine invertebrate taxa has been limited, particularly given the complex and highly repetitive nature of many of these organisms' genomes. This study develops and evaluates an optimised ddRADseq technique together with associated analyses for generating genome-wide SNP data, and performs population genomic analyses to inform aquaculture and fishery management of a marine bivalve, the black-lip pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera. A total of 5243 high-quality genome-wide SNP markers were detected, and used to assess population structure, genome diversity, detect Fst outliers and perform association testing in 156 individuals belonging to three wild and one hatchery produced populations from the Fiji Islands. Shallow but significant population structure was revealed among all wild populations (average pairwise Fst=0.046) when visualised with DAPC and an individual network analysis (NetView P), with clear evidence of a genetic bottleneck in the hatchery population (NeLD=6.1), compared to wild populations (NeLD>192.5). Fst outlier detection revealed 42-62 highly differentiated SNPs (p<0.02), while case-control association discovered up to 152 SNPs (p<0.001). Both analyses were able to successfully differentiate individuals between the orange and black tissue colour morphotypes characteristic of this species. BLAST searches revealed that five of these SNPs were associated with a melanin biosynthesis pathway, demonstrating their biological relevance. This study has produced highly informative SNP and population genomic data in P. margaritifera, and using the same approach promises to be of substantial value to a range of other non-model, broadcast-spawning or marine invertebrate taxa.

Domestication as a Novel Approach for Improving the Cultivation of Calanoid Copepods: A Case Study with Parvocalanus crassirostris

Calanoid copepods are an important food source for most fish larvae. Their role as a natural prey item means that it is important to develop culture technology for copepods to meet the requirements of larvae culture in aquaculture hatcheries. Copepods have been cultured successfully for some time; however, the implications of long-term cultivation or domestication on copepod life history traits have not yet been assessed. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine if the domesticated and wild populations of Parvocalanus crassirostris are phenotypically or physiologically different. Wild-caught P. crassirostris were compared to a long-held domesticated strain (>2 years) for size of developmental stage, fecundity and lifespan of adult females, culture density, ingestion rates, faecal pellet production and fatty acid profiles. The domesticated strain was significantly different from the wild strain in size (eggs, nauplii, copepodites and adults were larger in the domesticated strain), egg production (112.3 ± 1.8 eggs female^-1 vs. 64.6 ± 3.3 eggs female^-1) and adult female lifespan (8.8 ± 0.1 days vs., 7.5 ± 0.1 days). At 1, 3 and 5 adults mL^-1, the domesticated strain performed significantly better than the wild strain in egg production (4189.8 ± 61.2, 11224.0 ± 71.7 and 21860.6 ± 103.6 eggs vs. 1319.5 ± 54.3, 2374.5 ± 80.9 and 4933.8 ± 269.5 eggs, respectively) and mean daily mortality rate (5.6% across all densities vs. 22.9 ± 1.6, 29.8 ± 1.2 and 31.3 ± 1.3%, respectively). The domesticated strain had significantly higher ingestion rates than the wild stain (888.4 ± 9.9 ng C l^-1 and 775.3 ± 11.2 ng C l^-1, respectively), while faecal pellet production was not significantly different between strains. Fatty acid profiles indicated higher levels (as % of total fatty acid) of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in the domesticated strain (36.2±0.4%) than the wild strain (16.1±0.1%). Overall, this study found that the reproductive capacity and tolerance to the culture environment of the calanoid P. crassirostris have improved significantly due to domestication.

Oceanographic Currents and Local Ecological Knowledge Indicate, and Genetics Does Not Refute, a Contemporary Pattern of Larval Dispersal for The Ornate Spiny Lobster, Panulirus ornatus in the South-East Asian Archipelago

Here we utilize a combination of genetic data, oceanographic data, and local ecological knowledge to assess connectivity patterns of the ornate spiny lobster Panulirus ornatus (Fabricius, 1798) in the South-East Asian archipelago from Vietnam to Australia. Partial mitochondrial DNA control region and 10 polymorphic microsatellites did not detect genetic structure of 216 wild P. ornatus samples from Australia, Indonesia and Vietnam. Analyses show no evidence for genetic differentiation among populations (mtDNA control region sequences Φ_ST = -0.008; microsatellite loci F_ST = 0.003). A lack of evidence for regional or localized mtDNA haplotype clusters, or geographic clusters of microsatellite genotypes, reveals a pattern of high gene flow in P. ornatus throughout the South-East Asian Archipelago. This lack of genetic structure may be due to the oceanography-driven connectivity of the pelagic lobster larvae between spawning grounds in Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and, possibly, Indonesia. The connectivity cycle necessitates three generations. The lack of genetic structure of P. ornatus population in the South-East Asian archipelago has important implications for the sustainable management of this lobster in that the species within the region needs to be managed as one genetic stock.

Mitogenomic phylogeny of the Percichthyidae and Centrarchiformes (Percomorphaceae): comparison with recent nuclear gene-based studies and simultaneous analysis

Delineation of the fish family Percichthyidae (Percomorphaceae) has a long and convoluted history, with recent morphological-based studies restricting species members to South American and Australian freshwater and catadromous temperate perches. Four recent nuclear gene-based phylogenetic studies, however, found that the Percichthyidae was not monophyletic and was nested within a newly discovered inter-familial clade of Percomorphaceae, the Centrarchiformes, which comprises the Centrarchidae and 12 other families. Here, we reexamined the systematics of the Percichthyidae and Centrarchiformes based on new mitogenomic information. Our mitogenomic results are globally congruent with the recent nuclear gene-based studies although the overall amount of phylogenetic signal of the mitogenome is lower. They do not support the monophyly of the Percichthyidae, because the catadromous genus Percalates is not exclusively related to the freshwater percichthyids. The Percichthyidae (minus Percalates) and Percalates belong to a larger clade, equivalent to the Centrarchiformes, but their respective sister groups are unresolved. Because all recent analyses recover a monophyletic Centrarchiformes but with substantially different intra-relationships, we performed a simultaneous analysis for a character set combining the mitogenome and 19 nuclear genes previously published, for 22 centrarchiform taxa. This analysis furthermore indicates that the Centrarchiformes are divided into three lineages and the superfamily Cirrhitoidea is monophyletic as well as the temperate and freshwater centrarchiform perch-like fishes. It also clarifies some of the relationships within the freshwater Percichthyidae.

Differential IgE binding to isoallergens from Asian seabass (Lates calcarifer) in children and adults

Fish allergy is a common food allergy, with prevalence rates in the general population ranging between 0.2% and 2.3%. In both adults and children fish ranks in the top eight foods known to cause IgE mediated food allergy. Fish allergy is rarely outgrown and individuals with fish allergy may be allergic to some but not all species of fish. Whilst fish allergy occurs around the world, the characterization of allergenic components of individual species of fish has been largely confined to Northern hemisphere and European fish species. To date allergy to commonly consumed fish in the Asian-Pacific region including barramundi (Asian seabass; Lates calcarifer) have been less well investigated. The aim of this study was to identify and characterize allergenic proteins from barramundi in both fish allergic adult and pediatric patients. Serum from 17 fish allergic adults and children from Australia were characterized by immunoblotting and enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) against raw and heated barramundi. Molecular analysis of identified allergens included genetic sequencing and generation of recombinant isoallergens. Two novel parvalbumin isoforms of the β-type were identified as the only allergens in barramundi and subsequently designated as Lat c 1.0101 and Lat c 1.0201 by the International Union of Immunological Societies. These two isoallergens do not differ in their ability to bind IgE antibodies, but are differentially expressed in barramundi tissue. This study characterized two novel heat stable parvalbumin allergens from barramundi, with differential IgE binding capacity between adults and pediatric patients.

Effects of growth phase and nitrogen starvation on expression of fatty acid desaturases and fatty acid composition of Isochrysis aff. galbana (TISO)

Very long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (VLC-PUFAs) are important dietary requirements for maintaining human health. Many marine microalgae are naturally high in ω-3 VLC-PUFAs, however, the molecular mechanisms underpinning fatty acid (FA) desaturation and elongation in algae are poorly understood. An advanced molecular understanding would facilitate improvements of this nascent industry. We aimed to investigate expression responses of four front-end fatty acid desaturase genes and downstream effects on FA profiles to nitrogen limitation and cultivation growth stage in Isochrysis aff. galbana (TISO). Cultures were grown in nitrogen-replete and -deplete medium; samples were harvested during logarithmic, late logarithmic and stationary growth phases to analyse FA content/composition and gene expression of ∆(6)-, ∆(8)-, ∆(5)- and ∆(4)-desaturases (d6FAD (putative), d8FAD, d5FAD and d4FAD, respectively). d6FAD (putative) exhibited no differential expression, while d8FAD, d5FAD and d4FAD were significantly upregulated during logarithmic growth of nutrient-replete cultures, coinciding with rapid cell division. In conclusion, it is demonstrated that expression of some FADs in I. aff. galbana varies with culture age and nitrogen status which has downstream consequences on FA desaturation levels. This has implications for the commercial production of VLC-PUFAs where a trade-off between total lipid yield and VLC-PUFAs has to be made.

Influence of drainage divides versus arid corridors on genetic structure and demography of a widespread freshwater turtle, Emydura macquarii krefftii, from Australia

The influence of Pleistocene climatic cycles on Southern Hemisphere biotas is not yet well understood. Australia's eastern coastal margin provides an ideal setting for examining the relative influence of landscape development, sea level fluctuation, and cyclic climatic aridity on the evolution of freshwater biodiversity. We examined the impact of climatic oscillations and physical biogeographic barriers on the evolutionary history of the wide-ranging Krefft's river turtle (Emydura macquarii krefftii), using range-wide sampling (649 individuals representing 18 locations across 11 drainages) and analysis of mitochondrial sequences (∼1.3-kb control region and ND4) and nuclear microsatellites (12 polymorphic loci). A range of phylogeographic (haplotype networks, molecular dating), demographic (neutrality tests, mismatch distributions), and population genetic analyses (pairwise F ST, analysis of molecular variance, Bayesian clustering analysis) were implemented to differentiate between competing demographic (local persistence vs. range expansion) and biogeographic (arid corridor vs. drainage divide) scenarios. Genetic data reveal population genetic structure in Krefft's river turtles primarily reflects isolation across drainage divides. Striking north-south regional divergence (2.2% ND4 p-distance; c. 4.73 Ma, 95% higher posterior density (HPD) 2.08-8.16 Ma) was consistent with long-term isolation across a major drainage divide, not an adjacent arid corridor. Ancient divergence among regional lineages implies persistence of northern Krefft's populations despite the recurrent phases of severe local aridity, but with very low contemporary genetic diversity. Stable demography and high levels of genetic diversity are inferred for southern populations, where aridity was less extreme. Range-wide genetic structure in Krefft's river turtles reflects contemporary and historical drainage architecture, although regional differences in the extent of Plio-Pleistocene climatic aridity may be reflected in current levels of genetic diversity.

Genome-wide SNP validation and mantle tissue transcriptome analysis in the silver-lipped pearl oyster, Pinctada maxima

Pearl oysters are not only farmed for their gemstone quality pearls worldwide, but they are also becoming important model organisms for investigating genetic mechanisms of biomineralisation. Despite their economic and scientific significance, limited genomic resources are available for this important group of bivalves, hampering investigations into identifying genes that regulate important pearl quality traits and unique biological characteristics (i.e. biomineralisation). The silver-lipped pearl oyster, Pinctada maxima, is one species where there is interest in understanding genes that regulate commercially important pearl traits, but presently, there is a dearth of genomic information. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a large number of type I genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for P. maxima suitable for high-throughput genotyping. In addition, sequence annotations and Gene Ontology terms were assigned to a large mantle tissue 454 expressed sequence tag assembly (96,794 contigs) and information on known bivalve biomineralisation genes was incorporated into SNP discovery. The SNP discovery effort resulted in the de novo identification of 172,625 SNPs, of which 9,108 were identified as high value [minor allele frequency (MAF)≥ 0.15, read depth  ≥ 8]. Validation of 2,782 of these SNPs using Illumina iSelect Infinium genotyping technology returned some of the highest assay conversion (86.6 %) and validation (59.9 %; mean MAF 0.28) rates observed in aquaculture species to date. Genomic resources presented here will be pivotal to future research investigating the biological mechanisms behind biomineralisation and will form a strong foundation for genetic selective breeding programs in the P. maxima pearling industry.

A high-density SNP genetic linkage map for the silver-lipped pearl oyster, Pinctada maxima: a valuable resource for gene localisation and marker-assisted selection

Background

The silver-lipped pearl oyster, Pinctada maxima, is an important tropical aquaculture species extensively farmed for the highly sought "South Sea" pearls. Traditional breeding programs have been initiated for this species in order to select for improved pearl quality, but many economic traits under selection are complex, polygenic and confounded with environmental factors, limiting the accuracy of selection. The incorporation of a marker-assisted selection (MAS) breeding approach would greatly benefit pearl breeding programs by allowing the direct selection of genes responsible for pearl quality. However, before MAS can be incorporated, substantial genomic resources such as genetic linkage maps need to be generated. The construction of a high-density genetic linkage map for P. maxima is not only essential for unravelling the genomic architecture of complex pearl quality traits, but also provides indispensable information on the genome structure of pearl oysters.

Results

A total of 1,189 informative genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were incorporated into linkage map construction. The final linkage map consisted of 887 SNPs in 14 linkage groups, spans a total genetic distance of 831.7 centimorgans (cM), and covers an estimated 96% of the P. maxima genome. Assessment of sex-specific recombination across all linkage groups revealed limited overall heterochiasmy between the sexes (i.e. 1.15:1 F/M map length ratio). However, there were pronounced localised differences throughout the linkage groups, whereby male recombination was suppressed near the centromeres compared to female recombination, but inflated towards telomeric regions. Mean values of LD for adjacent SNP pairs suggest that a higher density of markers will be required for powerful genome-wide association studies. Finally, numerous nacre biomineralization genes were localised providing novel positional information for these genes.

Conclusions

This high-density SNP genetic map is the first comprehensive linkage map for any pearl oyster species. It provides an essential genomic tool facilitating studies investigating the genomic architecture of complex trait variation and identifying quantitative trait loci for economically important traits useful in genetic selection programs within the P. maxima pearling industry. Furthermore, this map provides a foundation for further research aiming to improve our understanding of the dynamic process of biomineralization, and pearl oyster evolution and synteny.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2164-14-810) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Temperature: a prolonged confounding factor on cholinesterase activity in the tropical reef fish Acanthochromis polyacanthus

Cholinesterase activity usually decreases in fish exposed to anticholinesterase compounds such as organophosphate and carbamate pesticides. Here we show that tropical reef fish Acanthochromis polyacanthus (or spiny damsel) also exhibits a decrease in ChE activity when exposed to elevated temperature from 28°C to 32°C or 34°C after 4 days. We further demonstrate that the decline persists even after 7 days of recovery at control temperature. This is the first report of a drop in ChE activity in fish as temperature increases. Our results strongly suggest the need for long-term monitoring of water temperature in the field prior to sampling A. polyacanthus for toxicology studies, as temperature is a prolonged and confounding factor for ChE activity in this species.

Next-generation transcriptome profiling reveals insights into genetic factors contributing to growth differences and temperature adaptation in Australian populations of barramundi (Lates calcarifer)

Identification of genetically-regulated adaptation in fish is a precursor to understanding how populations will respond to future climate induced stressors like temperature. Australian populations of barramundi (Lates calcarifer) show strong evidence of local adaptation to temperature. However, the phenotypic consequences of this adaptation are unknown and the genetic mechanisms underlying this response are poorly understood. In the current study, two populations of barramundi from temperature extremes of the species Australian distribution were communally reared at cool (22°C), control (28°C) and hot (36°C) water temperatures for 3.5months. Southern populations of barramundi originating from a cooler environment grew significantly faster at 22°C than northern populations of warm adapted barramundi. However, no difference in population growth was present at either 28°C or 36°C. The underlying transcriptome profile of barramundi was examined via Illumina mRNA deep sequencing to determine the major contributing gene categories giving rise to phenotypic differences in barramundi population growth. Gene ontology (GO) analysis revealed enrichment in categories relating to the regulation of peptidase activity as well as microtubule, cytoplasmic and cellular metabolic based processes. Further analysis of the GO category "microtubule based process" with associated genes from the "response to stress" category revealed an apparent re-organization of cytoskeletal elements in response to an induced cold stress in northern barramundi reared at 22°C, when compared with northern barramundi reared at 36°C. Between southern barramundi and northern barramundi reared at 36°C, an analysis of the "endopeptidase inhibitor activity" GO category in conjunction with stress genes indicated a suppression of the complement system in southern barramundi along with an increase in the cellular stress response. The results of the present study show that southern populations of barramundi exhibit underlying molecular adaptation to cooler water temperatures, but still retain a tolerance for warm water temperatures. Furthermore, GO profiling has revealed groups of genes that underlie population differences in temperature tolerance as a means to prioritize the analysis of differential gene expression in studies of local adaptation in the future.

The gene expression response of the catadromous perciform barramundi Lates calcarifer to an acute heat stress

The acute heat-shock response of the tropical estuarine fish species barramundi Lates calcarifer as indicated by the expression of genes within stress (hsp 90AA, hsp 90AB, hsp 70 and hsc 70), metabolic (cisy, cco II and ldh) and growth (igf1 and mstn 1) related pathways was examined following an increase in water temperature from 28 to 36° C over 30 min. Lates calcarifer were maintained at the acute stress temperature of 36° C for 1 h before being returned to 28° C and allowed to recover at this temperature for a further 2 weeks. Muscle tissue sampling over the experimental period allowed for the expression quantification of stress, metabolic and growth-related genes via quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qrt-PCR) where a robust and reliable normalization approach identified both α-tub and Rpl8 as appropriate genes for the analysis of gene expression in response to an acute heat stress. hsp90AA and hsp70 of the inducible heat-shock response pathway showed a massive up-regulation of gene expression in response to heat stress, whilst the constitutive heat-shock genes hsp90AB and hsp70 showed no change over the course of the experiment and a small increase after 2 weeks of recovery, respectively. Of the three genes representing the metabolic pathway (cisy, cco II and ldh) only cco II changed significantly showing a decrease in gene expression, which may suggest a small suppression of aerobic metabolism. igf1 of the growth pathway showed no significant differences in response to an acute heat stress, whilst mstn1 increased at the beginning of the heat stress but returned to basal levels soon after. Overall, the results demonstrate that an acute heat stress in L. calcarifer caused a significant increase in the expression of genes from the stress response pathway and a possible decrease in aerobic metabolism with only relatively minor changes to the growth pathway highlighting the hardy nature of L. calcarifer and its resilience in coping with sudden temperature changes routinely encountered within its natural environment.

A robust flow-cytometric protocol for assessing growth rate of hatchery-reared barramundi Lates calcarifer larvae

In this study, a flow-cytometric cell cycle analysis method to assess instantaneous growth rate of whole larvae of the Australian barramundi Lates calcarifer was developed and validated. High-resolution DNA measurements of either fresh, frozen or RNAlater-preserved larvae (gap0-gap1, G(0) -G(1), coefficient of variation (c.v.) < 3, 4 and 5%, respectively) enabled the deconvolution of the DNA histogram and assignment of the proportion of nuclei into cell cycle compartments G(0) -G(1), S (DNA synthesis) and G(2) -M (Gap2-Mitosis). This technique can be also used for individual fish tissues such as brain, liver, fin and muscle. For the first time, the combined proportion of replicating nuclei (into S and G(2) -M phases) of whole fish larvae and absolute growth rate in length (mm day(-1)) has been correlated in commercial aquaculture conditions. Fast growing L. calcarifer larvae had an overall hyperplasia advantage as indicated by a greater proportion of cells in the S+G(2) -M phase compared with slow growing larvae, which might explain the increasing differences in size during culture. In a fasting trial, larvae ceased growth while maintaining the constant initial rates of cell division throughout a 6 day period. For a highly fed fast growing control group, cell division rates significantly increased after day 4. Flow-cytometric cell cycle analysis of whole fish larvae may provide fish biologists and aquaculturists with a better understanding of how cell division rates influence early growth in natural and artificial environments.