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Su Y, Wu Y, Ye M, Zhao C, Li L, Cai J, Chakraborty T, Yang L, Wang D, Zhou L. Star1 gene mutation reveals the essentiality of 11-ketotestosterone and glucocorticoids for male fertility in Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Comp Biochem Physiol B Biochem Mol Biol 2024; 273:110985. [PMID: 38729293 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpb.2024.110985] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2024] [Revised: 04/29/2024] [Accepted: 04/29/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
Steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (Star) plays an essential role in the biosynthesis of corticosteroids and sex steroids by mediating the transport of cholesterol from the outer to the inner membrane of mitochondria. Two duplicated Star genes, namely star1 and star2, have been identified in non-mammalian vertebrates. To investigate the roles of star genes in fish steriodogenesis, we generated two mutation lines of star1-/- and star1-/-/star2-/- in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Previous studies revealed that deficiency of star2 gene caused delayed spermatogenesis, sperm apoptosis and sterility in male tilapia. Our present data revealed that mutation of star genes impaired male fertility. Disordered seminiferous lobules and spermatic duct obstruction were found in the testis of both types of mutants. Moreover, significant decline in semen volume, sperm abnormality and impaired fertility were also detected in star1-/- and star1-/-/star2-/- males. In star1-/- male fish, lipid accumulation, up-regulation of steroidogenic enzymes, and significant decline of androgens were found. Additionally, hyperplasic interrenal cells, elevated steroidogenic gene expression level and decline of serum glucocorticoids were detected in star1 mutants. Intriguingly, either 11-KT or cortisol supplementation successfully rescued the impaired fertility of the star1-/- mutants. Taken together, these results further indicate that Star1 might play critical roles in the production of both 11-KT and glucocorticoids, which are indispensable for the maintenance of male fertility in fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Su
- Fisheries Engineering Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Beijing, PR China; Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, PR China
| | - You Wu
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, PR China
| | - Maolin Ye
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, PR China
| | - Chenhua Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, PR China
| | - Lu Li
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, PR China
| | - Jing Cai
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, PR China
| | | | - Lanying Yang
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, PR China
| | - Deshou Wang
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, PR China.
| | - Linyan Zhou
- Fisheries Engineering Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Beijing, PR China.
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He Z, Xiao F, Yang D, Deng F, Ding W, He Z, Wang S, Chen Q, Wang H, Chen M, Gao K, Xiong J, Tang Z, Zhang M, Yan T. Protein expression patterns and metal metabolites in a protogynous hermaphrodite fish, the ricefield eel (Monopterus albus). BMC Genomics 2024; 25:500. [PMID: 38773374 PMCID: PMC11106920 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-024-10397-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The ricefield eel Monopterus albus undergoes a natural sex change from female to male during its life cycle, and previous studies have shown the potential mechanisms of this transition at the transcriptional and protein levels. However, the changes in protein levels have not been fully explored, especially in the intersexual stage. RESULTS In the present study, the protein expression patterns in the gonadal tissues from five different periods, the ovary (OV), early intersexual stage gonad (IE), middle intersexual stage gonad (IM), late intersexual stage gonad (IL), and testis (TE), were determined by untargeted proteomics sequencing. A total of 5125 proteins and 394 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were detected in the gonadal tissues. Of the 394 DEPs, there were 136 between the OV and IE groups, 20 between the IM and IE groups, 179 between the IL and IM groups, and 59 between the TE and IL groups. Three candidate proteins, insulin-like growth factor 2 mRNA-binding protein 3 isoform X1 (Igf2bp3), triosephosphate isomerase (Tpi), and Cu-Zn superoxide dismutase isoform X1 [(Cu-Zn) Sod1], were validated by western blotting to verify the reliability of the data. Furthermore, metal metabolite-related proteins were enriched in the IL vs. IM groups and TE vs. IL groups, which had close relationships with sex change, including Cu2+-, Ca2+-, Zn2+- and Fe2+/Fe3+-related proteins. Analysis of the combined transcriptome data revealed consistent protein/mRNA expression trends for two metal metabolite-related proteins/genes [LOC109953912 and calcium Binding Protein 39 Like (cab39l)]. Notably, we detected significantly higher levels of Cu2+ during the sex change process, suggesting that Cu2+ is a male-related metal metabolite that may have an important function in male reproductive development. CONCLUSIONS In summary, we analyzed the protein profiles of ricefield eel gonadal tissues in five sexual stages (OV, IE, IM, IL, and TE) and verified the plausibility of the data. After preforming the functional enrichment of metal metabolite-related DEPs, we detected the contents of the metal metabolites Zn2+, Cu2+, Ca2+, and Fe2+/Fe3+ at these five stages and screened for (Cu-Zn) Sod1 and Mmp-9 as possible key proteins in the sex reversal process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhi He
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
- Fish Resources and Environment in Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River Observation and Research Station of Sichuan Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Feng Xiao
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Deying Yang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
- Fish Resources and Environment in Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River Observation and Research Station of Sichuan Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Faqiang Deng
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Wenxiang Ding
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Zhide He
- Fish Resources and Environment in Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River Observation and Research Station of Sichuan Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Siqi Wang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Qiqi Chen
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Haochen Wang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Mingqiang Chen
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Kuo Gao
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Jinxing Xiong
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Ziting Tang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
- Fish Resources and Environment in Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River Observation and Research Station of Sichuan Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Mingwang Zhang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
- Fish Resources and Environment in Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River Observation and Research Station of Sichuan Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China
| | - Taiming Yan
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China.
- Fish Resources and Environment in Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River Observation and Research Station of Sichuan Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China.
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Tseng PW, Lin CJ, Tsao YH, Kuo WL, Chen HC, Dufour S, Wu GC, Chang CF. The effect of gonadal hormones on the gene expression of brain-pituitary in protandrous black porgy, Acanthopagrus schlegelii. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2024; 351:114482. [PMID: 38432348 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2024.114482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2023] [Revised: 02/03/2024] [Accepted: 02/25/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
In black porgy (Acanthopagrus schlegelii), the brain-pituitary-testis (Gnrh-Gths-Dmrt1) axis plays a vital role in male fate determination and maintenance, and then inhibiting female development in further (puberty). However, the feedback of gonadal hormones on regulating brain signaling remains unclear. In this study, we conducted short-term sex steroid treatment and surgery of gonadectomy to evaluate the feedback regulation between the gonads and the brain. The qPCR results show that male phase had the highest gths transcripts; treatment with estradiol-17β (E2) or 17α-methyltestosterone (MT) resulted in the increased pituitary lhb transcripts. After surgery, apart from gnrh1, there is no difference in brain signaling genes between gonadectomy and sham fish. In the diencephalon/mesencephalon transcriptome, de novo assembly generated 283,528 unigenes; however, only 443 (0.16%) genes showed differentially expressed between sham and gonadectomy fish. In the present study, we found that exogenous sex steroids affect the gths transcription; this feedback control is related to the gonadal stage. Furthermore, gonadectomy may not affect gene expression of brain signaling (Gnrh-Gths axis). Our results support the communication between ovotestis and brain signaling (Gnrh-Gths-testicular Dmrt1) for the male fate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng-Wei Tseng
- Doctoral Degree Program in Marine Biotechnology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan; Doctoral Degree Program in Marine Biotechnology, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan
| | - Chien-Ju Lin
- Department of Aquaculture, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 912, Taiwan
| | - Yuan-Han Tsao
- Department of Aquaculture, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan
| | - Wei-Lun Kuo
- Department of Aquaculture, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan
| | - Hsin-Chih Chen
- Department of Aquaculture, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan
| | - Sylvie Dufour
- Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan; Biology of Aquatic Organisms and Ecosystems (BOREA), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Sorbonne Université, CNRS, IRD, Paris, France
| | - Guan-Chung Wu
- Department of Aquaculture, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan; Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan.
| | - Ching-Fong Chang
- Department of Aquaculture, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan; Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan.
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Ding H, Wang M, Wang M, Wu S, Guo Y, Gao Y, Li L, Bao Z, Wang B, Hu J. Synchronously sexual maturity in hermaphrodite fish as revealed by transcriptome analysis in Plectropomus leopardus. Gene 2024; 901:148166. [PMID: 38242379 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2024.148166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2023] [Revised: 12/16/2023] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 01/21/2024]
Abstract
Leopard coral grouper (Plectropomus leopardus) is a type of hermaphrodite fish, but the mechanisms of gonadal development and gametogenesis remain unclear. In the present study, we performed histological observation and transcriptomic analysis during the process of sexual differentiation in P. leopardus. According to the histological results, sexual differentiation was completed at 15 months old, developed synchronously in male and female individuals at 2 years old, and matured synchronously at 3 years old. Comparative transcriptomic analyses showed that the gonadal had differentiated by 15 months old, with enrichment of pathways associated with cell proliferation, transcriptional metabolism, and germline stem cell differentiation. Furthermore, cilium movement and fatty acid anabolism, which are associated with spermatogenesis and oocyte growth, were significantly enriched at 3 years old. In addition, key genes associated with male and female sex differentiation, such as amh, dmrt1, dmrt2a, zp4, sox3, gdf9, and gsdf, were identified by weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA). Finally, the localization and expression of the key genes amh and sox3 were observed in different cell types within the testes and ovaries, reflecting the development of the testes and ovaries, respectively. All the evidence indicates that P. leopardus is a hermaphrodite and synchronously sexually mature fish. Our study complements the gonadal development patterns of hermaphroditic fish by providing new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying sexual differentiation and sex change in hermaphroditic groupers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Ding
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China
| | - Mengya Wang
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China
| | - Mingyi Wang
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China
| | - Shaoxuan Wu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China
| | - Yilan Guo
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China
| | - Yurui Gao
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China
| | - Lin Li
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China
| | - Zhenmin Bao
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China; Hainan Seed Industry Laboratory, Sanya 572025, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineer Guangdong Laboratory, Guangzhou 511458, China
| | - Bo Wang
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China; Hainan Seed Industry Laboratory, Sanya 572025, China.
| | - Jingjie Hu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life Sciences/Key Laboratory of Tropical Aquatic Germplasm of Hainan Province, Sanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of China, Qingdao/Sanya, China; Hainan Seed Industry Laboratory, Sanya 572025, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineer Guangdong Laboratory, Guangzhou 511458, China.
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5
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Roggenbuck EC, Hall EA, Hanson IB, Roby AA, Zhang KK, Alkatib KA, Carter JA, Clewner JE, Gelfius AL, Gong S, Gordon FR, Iseler JN, Kotapati S, Li M, Maysun A, McCormick EO, Rastogi G, Sengupta S, Uzoma CU, Wolkov MA, Clowney EJ. Let's talk about sex: Mechanisms of neural sexual differentiation in Bilateria. WIREs Mech Dis 2024; 16:e1636. [PMID: 38185860 DOI: 10.1002/wsbm.1636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2023] [Revised: 11/20/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/09/2024]
Abstract
In multicellular organisms, sexed gonads have evolved that facilitate release of sperm versus eggs, and bilaterian animals purposefully combine their gametes via mating behaviors. Distinct neural circuits have evolved that control these physically different mating events for animals producing eggs from ovaries versus sperm from testis. In this review, we will describe the developmental mechanisms that sexually differentiate neural circuits across three major clades of bilaterian animals-Ecdysozoa, Deuterosomia, and Lophotrochozoa. While many of the mechanisms inducing somatic and neuronal sex differentiation across these diverse organisms are clade-specific rather than evolutionarily conserved, we develop a common framework for considering the developmental logic of these events and the types of neuronal differences that produce sex-differentiated behaviors. This article is categorized under: Congenital Diseases > Stem Cells and Development Neurological Diseases > Stem Cells and Development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma C Roggenbuck
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Elijah A Hall
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Isabel B Hanson
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Alyssa A Roby
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Katherine K Zhang
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Kyle A Alkatib
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Joseph A Carter
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Jarred E Clewner
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Anna L Gelfius
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Shiyuan Gong
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Finley R Gordon
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Jolene N Iseler
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Samhita Kotapati
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Marilyn Li
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Areeba Maysun
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Elise O McCormick
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Geetanjali Rastogi
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Srijani Sengupta
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Chantal U Uzoma
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Madison A Wolkov
- MCDB 464 - Cellular Diversity: Sex Differentiation of the Brain, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - E Josephine Clowney
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
- Michigan Neuroscience Institute Affiliate, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
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Monthony AS, de Ronne M, Torkamaneh D. Exploring ethylene-related genes in Cannabis sativa: implications for sexual plasticity. PLANT REPRODUCTION 2024:10.1007/s00497-023-00492-5. [PMID: 38218931 DOI: 10.1007/s00497-023-00492-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/15/2024]
Abstract
KEY MESSAGE Presented here are model Yang cycle, ethylene biosynthesis and signaling pathways in Cannabis sativa. C. sativa floral transcriptomes were used to predict putative ethylene-related genes involved in sexual plasticity in the species. Sexual plasticity is a phenomenon, wherein organisms possess the ability to alter their phenotypic sex in response to environmental and physiological stimuli, without modifying their sex chromosomes. Cannabis sativa L., a medically valuable plant species, exhibits sexual plasticity when subjected to specific chemicals that influence ethylene biosynthesis and signaling. Nevertheless, the precise contribution of ethylene-related genes (ERGs) to sexual plasticity in cannabis remains unexplored. The current study employed Arabidopsis thaliana L. as a model organism to conduct gene orthology analysis and reconstruct the Yang Cycle, ethylene biosynthesis, and ethylene signaling pathways in C. sativa. Additionally, two transcriptomic datasets comprising male, female, and chemically induced male flowers were examined to identify expression patterns in ERGs associated with sexual determination and sexual plasticity. These ERGs involved in sexual plasticity were categorized into two distinct expression patterns: floral organ concordant (FOC) and unique (uERG). Furthermore, a third expression pattern, termed karyotype concordant (KC) expression, was proposed, which plays a role in sex determination. The study revealed that CsERGs associated with sexual plasticity are dispersed throughout the genome and are not limited to the sex chromosomes, indicating a widespread regulation of sexual plasticity in C. sativa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrian S Monthony
- Département de Phytologie, Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
- Institut de Biologie Intégrative et des Systèmes (IBIS), Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
- Centre de Recherche et d'innovation sur les végétaux (CRIV), Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
- Institut intelligence et données (IID), Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
| | - Maxime de Ronne
- Département de Phytologie, Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
- Institut de Biologie Intégrative et des Systèmes (IBIS), Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
- Centre de Recherche et d'innovation sur les végétaux (CRIV), Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
- Institut intelligence et données (IID), Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
| | - Davoud Torkamaneh
- Département de Phytologie, Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada.
- Institut de Biologie Intégrative et des Systèmes (IBIS), Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada.
- Centre de Recherche et d'innovation sur les végétaux (CRIV), Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada.
- Institut intelligence et données (IID), Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada.
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Yao A, Nakamura M, Kohtsuka H, Sunobe T, Miura T. Gonadal and cellular dynamics during protogynous sex change in the harlequin sandsmelt Parapercis pulchella. JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2023; 103:1347-1356. [PMID: 37621220 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.15534] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2023] [Revised: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 08/23/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023]
Abstract
Some teleost fishes change their sex, and some of these fishes have specific gonads known as "ovotestes," that is, gonads containing both ovarian and testicular tissues. In this study, we revealed the gonadal transformation process and cell dynamics during the female-to-male sex change in the harlequin sandsmelt, Parapercis pulchella (Pinguipetidae), in which females possess ovotestes. Histological observations revealed that although female ovotestes were composed of oocytes, a few cysts of male germ cells were observed among them. At the initial phase of sex change, male germ cells increased, and spermatogenesis proceeded. After that, oocytes decreased and finally disappeared, and the gonads became functional testes. Immunohistochemistry using antibodies against Pcna (proliferating cell nuclear antigen) as a cell proliferation marker revealed that spermatogonia were Pcna positive, whereas spermatocytes were negative, in female ovotestes. This suggests that spermatogenesis is arrested at the spermatocyte stage. In addition, some somatic cells surrounding oocytes, which were thought to be the female follicle cells, were Pcna positive during sex change, indicating that these cells proliferate during sex change and are reused in male testes after sex change. Also, immunostaining using antibodies against active cleaved-Caspase3a as an apoptosis marker demonstrated that oocytes degenerated through apoptotic cell death at the late transition stage. Together with previous findings in other fishes, these findings suggested that the histological processes in gonads during sex change, such as the order of developmental events, developmental fates of ovarian cavities, and ovotestis structures, are diversified among fish species. In contrast, cellular dynamics of female germ and somatic cells during sex change are common among protogynous species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akifumi Yao
- Misaki Marine Biological Station, School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Miura, Japan
| | - Mayuko Nakamura
- Misaki Marine Biological Station, School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Miura, Japan
| | - Hisanori Kohtsuka
- Misaki Marine Biological Station, School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Miura, Japan
| | - Tomoki Sunobe
- Laboratory of Fish Behavioral Ecology, Tateyama Station, Field Science Center, Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, Tateyama, Japan
| | - Toru Miura
- Misaki Marine Biological Station, School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Miura, Japan
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Luong K, Bernardo MF, Lindstrom M, Alluri RK, Rose GJ. Brain regions controlling courtship behavior in the bluehead wrasse. Curr Biol 2023; 33:4937-4949.e3. [PMID: 37898122 PMCID: PMC10764105 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2023] [Revised: 04/30/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/30/2023]
Abstract
Bluehead wrasses (Thalassoma bifasciatum) follow a socially controlled mechanism of sex determination. A socially dominant initial-phase (IP) female is able to transform into a new terminal-phase (TP) male if the resident TP male is no longer present. TP males display an elaborate array of courtship behaviors, including both color changes and motor behaviors. Little is known concerning the neural circuits that control male-typical courtship behaviors. This study used glutamate iontophoresis to identify regions that may be involved in courtship. Stimulation of the following brain regions elicited diverse types of color change responses, many of which appear similar to courtship color changes: the ventral telencephalon (supracommissural nucleus of the ventral telencephalon [Vs], lateral nucleus of the ventral telencephalon [Vl], ventral nucleus of the ventral telencephalon [Vv], and dorsal nucleus of the ventral telencephalon [Vd]), parts of the preoptic area (NPOmg and NPOpc), entopeduncular nucleus, habenular nucleus, and pretectal nuclei (PSi and PSm). Stimulation of two regions in the posterior thalamus (central posterior thalamic [CP] and dorsal posterior thalamic [DP]) caused movements of the pectoral fins that are similar to courtship fluttering and vibrations. Furthermore, these responses were elicited in female IP fish, indicating that circuits for sexual behaviors typical of TP males exist in females. Immunohistochemistry results revealed regions that are more active in fish that are not courting: interpeduncular nucleus, red nucleus, and ventrolateral thalamus (VL). Taken together, we propose that the telencephalic-habenular-interpeduncular pathway plays an important role in controlling and regulating courtship behaviors in TP males; in this model, in response to telencephalic input, the habenular nucleus inhibits the interpeduncular nucleus, thereby dis-inhibiting forebrain regions and promoting the expression of courtship behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyphuong Luong
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, 257 S 1400 E, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA.
| | - Madeline F Bernardo
- School of Medicine, University of Utah, 30 N 1900 E, Salt Lake City, UT 84132, USA
| | - Michael Lindstrom
- College of Osteopathic Medicine, New York Institute of Technology, 101 Northern Blvd, Glen Head, NY 11545, USA
| | - Rishi K Alluri
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, 257 S 1400 E, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Gary J Rose
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, 257 S 1400 E, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
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9
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Nugent CM, Kess T, Brachmann MK, Langille BL, Duffy SJ, Lehnert SJ, Wringe BF, Bentzen P, Bradbury IR. Whole-genome sequencing reveals fine-scale environment-associated divergence near the range limits of a temperate reef fish. Mol Ecol 2023; 32:4742-4762. [PMID: 37430462 DOI: 10.1111/mec.17063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2022] [Revised: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/12/2023]
Abstract
Environmental variation is increasingly recognized as an important driver of diversity in marine species despite the lack of physical barriers to dispersal and the presence of pelagic stages in many taxa. A robust understanding of the genomic and ecological processes involved in structuring populations is lacking for most marine species, often hindering management and conservation action. Cunner (Tautogolabrus adspersus) is a temperate reef fish with both pelagic early life-history stages and strong site-associated homing as adults; the species is also of interest for use as a cleaner fish in salmonid aquaculture in Atlantic Canada. We aimed to characterize genomic and geographic differentiation of cunner in the Northwest Atlantic. To achieve this, a chromosome-level genome assembly for cunner was produced and used to characterize spatial population structure throughout Atlantic Canada using whole-genome sequencing. The genome assembly spanned 0.72 Gbp and 24 chromosomes; whole-genome sequencing of 803 individuals from 20 locations from Newfoundland to New Jersey identified approximately 11 million genetic variants. Principal component analysis revealed four regional Atlantic Canadian groups. Pairwise FST and selection scans revealed signals of differentiation and selection at discrete genomic regions, including adjacent peaks on chromosome 10 across multiple pairwise comparisons (i.e. FST 0.5-0.75). Redundancy analysis suggested association of environmental variables related to benthic temperature and oxygen range with genomic structure. Results suggest regional scale diversity in this temperate reef fish and can directly inform the collection and translocation of cunner for aquaculture applications and the conservation of wild populations throughout the Northwest Atlantic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cameron M Nugent
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
| | - Tony Kess
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
| | - Matthew K Brachmann
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
| | - Barbara L Langille
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
| | - Steven J Duffy
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
| | - Sarah J Lehnert
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
| | - Brendan F Wringe
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada
| | - Paul Bentzen
- Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
| | - Ian R Bradbury
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
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10
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Zhang X, Li J, Chen S, Yang N, Zheng J. Overview of Avian Sex Reversal. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24098284. [PMID: 37175998 PMCID: PMC10179413 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24098284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2023] [Revised: 04/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/29/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Sex determination and differentiation are processes by which a bipotential gonad adopts either a testicular or ovarian cell fate, and secondary sexual characteristics adopt either male or female developmental patterns. In birds, although genetic factors control the sex determination program, sex differentiation is sensitive to hormones, which can induce sex reversal when disturbed. Although these sex-reversed birds can form phenotypes opposite to their genotypes, none can experience complete sex reversal or produce offspring under natural conditions. Promising evidence indicates that the incomplete sex reversal is associated with cell autonomous sex identity (CASI) of avian cells, which is controlled by genetic factors. However, studies cannot clearly describe the regulatory mechanism of avian CASI and sex development at present, and these factors require further exploration. In spite of this, the abundant findings of avian sex research have provided theoretical bases for the progress of gender control technologies, which are being improved through interdisciplinary co-operation and will ultimately be employed in poultry production. In this review, we provide an overview of avian sex determination and differentiation and comprehensively summarize the research progress on sex reversal in birds, especially chickens. Importantly, we describe key issues faced by applying gender control systems in poultry production and chronologically summarize the development of avian sex control methods. In conclusion, this review provides unique perspectives for avian sex studies and helps scientists develop more advanced systems for sex regulation in birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiuan Zhang
- Department of Animal Genetics and Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
- National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding and Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
| | - Jianbo Li
- Department of Animal Genetics and Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
- National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding and Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
| | - Sirui Chen
- Department of Animal Genetics and Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
- National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding and Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
| | - Ning Yang
- Department of Animal Genetics and Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
- National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding and Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
| | - Jiangxia Zheng
- Department of Animal Genetics and Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
- National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding and Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
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11
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Adolfi MC, Depincé A, Wen M, Pan Q, Herpin A. Development of Ovaries and Sex Change in Fish: Bringing Potential into Action. Sex Dev 2023; 17:84-98. [PMID: 36878204 DOI: 10.1159/000526008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2022] [Accepted: 07/08/2022] [Indexed: 03/08/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Encompassing about half of the 60,000 species of vertebrates, fish display the greatest diversity of sex determination mechanisms among metazoans. As such that phylum offers a unique playground to study the impressive variety of gonadal morphogenetic strategies, ranging from gonochorism, with either genetic or environmental sex determination, to unisexuality, with either simultaneous or consecutive hermaphroditism. SUMMARY From the two main types of gonads, the ovaries embrace the important role to produce the larger and non-motile gametes, which is the basis for the development of a future organism. The production of the egg cells is complex and involves the formation of follicular cells, which are necessary for the maturation of the oocytes and the production of feminine hormones. In this vein, our review focuses on the development of ovaries in fish with special emphasis on the germ cells, including those that transition from one sex to the other as part of their life cycle and those that are capable of transitioning to the opposite sex depending on environmental cues. KEY MESSAGES Clearly, establishing an individual as either a female or a male is not accomplished by the sole development of two types of gonads. In most cases, that dichotomy, be it final or transient, is accompanied by coordinated transformations across the entire organism, leading to changes in the physiological sex as a whole. These coordinated transformations require both molecular and neuroendocrine networks, but also anatomical and behavioural adjustments. Remarkably, fish managed to tame the ins and outs of sex reversal mechanisms to take the most advantages of changing sex as adaptive strategies in some situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mateus Contar Adolfi
- Developmental Biochemistry, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | | | - Ming Wen
- State Key Laboratory of Developmental Biology of Freshwater Fish, College of Life Sciences, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, China
| | - Qiaowei Pan
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Amaury Herpin
- Fish Physiology and Genomics, INRAE, UR 1037, Rennes, France
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12
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Holhorea PG, Felip A, Calduch-Giner JÀ, Afonso JM, Pérez-Sánchez J. Use of male-to-female sex reversal as a welfare scoring system in the protandrous farmed gilthead sea bream ( Sparus aurata). Front Vet Sci 2023; 9:1083255. [PMID: 36699328 PMCID: PMC9868933 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2022.1083255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Gilthead sea bream is a highly cultured marine fish throughout the Mediterranean area, but new and strict criteria of welfare are needed to assure that the intensification of production has no negative effects on animal farming. Most welfare indicators are specific to a given phase of the production cycle, but others such as the timing of puberty and/or sex reversal are of retrospective value. This is of particular relevance in the protandrous gilthead sea bream, in which the sex ratio is highly regulated at the nutritional level. Social and environmental factors (e.g., contaminant loads) also alter the sex ratio, but the contribution of the genetic component remains unclear. To assess this complex issue, five gilthead sea bream families representative of slow/intermediate/fast growth were grown out with control or a plant-based diet in a common garden system from early life to the completion of their sexual maturity in 3-year-old fish. The plant-based diet highly enhanced the male-to-female sex reversal. This occurred in parallel with the progressive impairment of growth performance, which was indicative of changes in nutrient requirements as the result of the different energy demands for growth and reproduction through development. The effect of a different nutritional and genetic background on the reproductive performance was also assessed by measurements of circulating levels of sex steroids during the two consecutive spawning seasons, varying plasma levels of 17β-estradiol (E2) and 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT) with age, gender, diet, and genetic background. Principal component analysis (PCA) of 3-year-old fish displayed a gradual increase of the E2/11-KT ratio from males to females with the improvement of nutritional/genetic background. Altogether, these results support the use of a reproductive tract scoring system for leading farmed fish toward their optimum welfare condition, contributing to improving the productivity of the current gilthead sea bream livestock.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul G Holhorea
- Nutrigenomics and Fish Growth Endocrinology Group, Institute of Aquaculture Torre de la Sal, CSIC, Castellón, Spain
| | - Alicia Felip
- Group of Fish Reproductive Physiology, Institute of Aquaculture Torre de la Sal, CSIC, Castellón, Spain
| | - Josep À Calduch-Giner
- Nutrigenomics and Fish Growth Endocrinology Group, Institute of Aquaculture Torre de la Sal, CSIC, Castellón, Spain
| | - Juan Manuel Afonso
- Aquaculture Research Group, Institute of Sustainable Aquaculture and Marine Ecosystems (IU-ECOAQUA), University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas, Spain
| | - Jaume Pérez-Sánchez
- Nutrigenomics and Fish Growth Endocrinology Group, Institute of Aquaculture Torre de la Sal, CSIC, Castellón, Spain
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13
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van Gelderen TA, Montfort J, Álvarez-Dios JA, Thermes V, Piferrer F, Bobe J, Ribas L. Deciphering sex-specific miRNAs as heat-recorders in zebrafish. Sci Rep 2022; 12:18722. [PMID: 36333360 PMCID: PMC9636255 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-21864-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
In the last decade, a plethora of microRNAs (miRNAs) has been reported in a wide variety of physiological processes, including reproduction, in many aquatic organisms. However, miRNAome alterations occurred by environmental cues due to water temperature increment have not yet been elucidated. With the aim to identify epigenetic regulations mediated by miRNAs in the gonads in a climate change scenario, the animal model zebrafish (Danio rerio) were subjected to high temperatures during sex differentiation, a treatment that results in male-skewed sex ratios in the adulthood. Once the fish reached adulthood, gonads were sequenced by high-throughput technologies and a total of 23 and 1 differentially expressed miRNAs in ovaries and testes, respectively, were identified two months after the heat treatment. Most of these heat-recorder miRNAs were involved in human sex-related cancer and about 400 predicted-target genes were obtained, some with reproduction-related functions. Their synteny in the zebrafish genome was, for more than half of the predicted target genes, in the chromosomes 7, 2, 4, 3 and 11 in the ovaries, chromosome 4 being the place where the sex-associated-region (sar) is localized in wild zebrafish. Further, spatial localization in the gonads of two selected heat-recorder miRNAs (miR-122-5p and miR-146-5p) showed exclusive expression in the ovarian germ cells. The present study expands the catalog of sex-specific miRNAs and deciphers, for the first time, thermosensitive miRNAs in the zebrafish gonads that might be used as potential epimarkers to predict environmental past events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tosca A van Gelderen
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ICM-CSIC), 08003, Barcelona, Spain
- PhD Program in Genetics, Autonomous University of Barcelona, 08193, Bellaterra, Spain
| | - Jérôme Montfort
- Laboratoire de Physiologie et Génomique des Poissons, INRAE, Rennes, France
| | - José Antonio Álvarez-Dios
- Departamento de Matemática Aplicada, Facultad de Matemáticas, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, 15781, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Violette Thermes
- Laboratoire de Physiologie et Génomique des Poissons, INRAE, Rennes, France
| | - Francesc Piferrer
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ICM-CSIC), 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Julien Bobe
- Laboratoire de Physiologie et Génomique des Poissons, INRAE, Rennes, France
| | - Laia Ribas
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ICM-CSIC), 08003, Barcelona, Spain.
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14
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Goikoetxea A, Todd EV, Muncaster S, Lokman PM, Thomas JT, Robertson HA, De Farias e Moraes CE, Gemmell NJ. Effects of cortisol on female-to-male sex change in a wrasse. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0273779. [PMID: 36048785 PMCID: PMC9436091 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0273779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 08/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Sex change occurs as a usual part of the life cycle for many teleost fish and the modifications involved (behavioural, gonadal, morphological) are well studied. However, the mechanism that transduces environmental cues into the molecular cascade that underlies this transformation remains unknown. Cortisol, the main stress hormone in fish, is hypothesised to be a key factor linking environmental stimuli with sex change by initiating gene expression changes that shift steroidogenesis from oestrogens to androgens but this notion remains to be rigorously tested. Therefore, this study aimed to experimentally test the role of cortisol as an initiator of sex change in a protogynous (female-to-male) hermaphrodite, the New Zealand spotty wrasse (Notolabrus celidotus). We also sought to identify potential key regulatory factors within the head kidney that may contribute to the initiation and progression of gonadal sex change. Cortisol pellets were implanted into female spotty wrasses under inhibitory conditions (presence of a male), and outside of the optimal season for natural sex change. Histological analysis of the gonads and sex hormone analyses found no evidence of sex change after 71 days of cortisol treatment. However, expression analyses of sex and stress-associated genes in gonad and head kidney suggested that cortisol administration did have a physiological effect. In the gonad, this included upregulation of amh, a potent masculinising factor, and nr3c1, a glucocorticoid receptor. In the head kidney, hsd11b2, which converts cortisol to inactive cortisone to maintain cortisol balance, was upregulated. Overall, our results suggest cortisol administration outside of the optimal sex change window is unable to initiate gonadal restructuring. However, our expression data imply key sex and stress genes are sensitive to cortisol. This includes genes expressed in both gonad and head kidney that have been previously implicated in early sex change in several sex-changing species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Goikoetxea
- Department of Anatomy, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
- * E-mail:
| | - Erica V. Todd
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
| | - Simon Muncaster
- Environmental Management Group, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, Tauranga, New Zealand
- School of Science, University of Waikato, Tauranga, New Zealand
| | - P. Mark Lokman
- Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - Jodi T. Thomas
- Department of Anatomy, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - Holly A. Robertson
- Environmental Management Group, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, Tauranga, New Zealand
| | | | - Neil J. Gemmell
- Department of Anatomy, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
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15
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Li XY, Mei J, Ge CT, Liu XL, Gui JF. Sex determination mechanisms and sex control approaches in aquaculture animals. SCIENCE CHINA. LIFE SCIENCES 2022; 65:1091-1122. [PMID: 35583710 DOI: 10.1007/s11427-021-2075-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 01/14/2022] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Aquaculture is one of the most efficient modes of animal protein production and plays an important role in global food security. Aquaculture animals exhibit extraordinarily diverse sexual phenotypes and underlying mechanisms, providing an ideal system to perform sex determination research, one of the important areas in life science. Moreover, sex is also one of the most valuable traits because sexual dimorphism in growth, size, and other economic characteristics commonly exist in aquaculture animals. Here, we synthesize current knowledge of sex determination mechanisms, sex chromosome evolution, reproduction strategies, and sexual dimorphism, and also review several approaches for sex control in aquaculture animals, including artificial gynogenesis, application of sex-specific or sex chromosome-linked markers, artificial sex reversal, as well as gene editing. We anticipate that better understanding of sex determination mechanisms and innovation of sex control approaches will facilitate sustainable development of aquaculture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xi-Yin Li
- State Key Laboratory of Freshwater Ecology and Biotechnology, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, The Innovative Academy of Seed Design, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430072, China
| | - Jie Mei
- College of Fisheries, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China
| | - Chu-Tian Ge
- College of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Wanli University, Ningbo, 315100, China
| | - Xiao-Li Liu
- Key Laboratory of Tropical & Subtropical Fishery Resource Application & Cultivation of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Pearl River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Guangzhou, 510380, China
| | - Jian-Fang Gui
- State Key Laboratory of Freshwater Ecology and Biotechnology, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, The Innovative Academy of Seed Design, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430072, China.
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16
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Bates KA, Higgins C, Neiman M, King KC. Turning the tide on sex and the microbiota in aquatic animals. HYDROBIOLOGIA 2022; 850:3823-3835. [PMID: 37662671 PMCID: PMC10468917 DOI: 10.1007/s10750-022-04862-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2021] [Revised: 03/08/2022] [Accepted: 03/10/2022] [Indexed: 09/05/2023]
Abstract
Sex-based differences in animal microbiota are increasingly recognized as of biological importance. While most animal biomass is found in aquatic ecosystems and many water-dwelling species are of high economic and ecological value, biological sex is rarely included as an explanatory variable in studies of the aquatic animal microbiota. In this opinion piece, we argue for greater consideration of host sex in studying the microbiota of aquatic animals, emphasizing the many advancements that this information could provide in the life sciences, from the evolution of sex to aquaculture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kieran A. Bates
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3SZ UK
| | - Chelsea Higgins
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IW 52245 USA
| | - Maurine Neiman
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IW 52245 USA
- Department of Gender, Women’s, and Sexuality Studies, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IW 52245 USA
| | - Kayla C. King
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3SZ UK
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17
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Ashra H, Nair S. Review: Trait plasticity during plant-insect interactions: From molecular mechanisms to impact on community dynamics. PLANT SCIENCE : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL PLANT BIOLOGY 2022; 317:111188. [PMID: 35193737 DOI: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2022.111188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2021] [Revised: 01/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Phenotypic plasticity, prevalent in all domains of life, enables organisms to cope with unpredictable or novel changes in their growing environment. Plants represent an interesting example of phenotypic plasticity which also directly represents and affects the dynamics of biological interactions occurring in a community. Insects, which interact with plants, manifest phenotypic plasticity in their developmental, physiological, morphological or behavioral traits in response to the various host plant defenses induced upon herbivory. However, plant-insect interactions are generally more complex and multidimensional because of their dynamic association with their respective microbiomes and macrobiomes. Moreover, these associations can alter plant and insect responses towards each other by modulating the degree of phenotypic plasticity in their various traits and studying them will provide insights into how plants and insects reciprocally affect each other's evolutionary trajectory. Further, we explore the consequences of phenotypic plasticity on relationships and interactions between plants and insects and its impact on their development, evolution, speciation and ecological organization. This overview, obtained after exploring and comparing data obtained from several inter-disciplinary studies, reveals how genetic and molecular mechanisms, underlying plasticity in traits, impact species interactions at the community level and also identifies mechanisms that could be exploited in breeding programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Himani Ashra
- Plant-Insect Interaction Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110 067, India
| | - Suresh Nair
- Plant-Insect Interaction Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110 067, India.
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18
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Control of gonadal maturation and sex in grouper. AQUACULTURE AND FISHERIES 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.aaf.2022.03.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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19
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Hu MY, Yu J, Lin JQ, Fang SG. Sex-Biased miRNAs in the Gonads of Adult Chinese Alligator ( Alligator sinensis) and Their Potential Roles in Sex Maintenance. Front Genet 2022; 13:843884. [PMID: 35432471 PMCID: PMC9008718 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.843884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2021] [Accepted: 01/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
MicroRNA (miRNA) is a category of single-stranded non-coding small RNA (sRNA) that regulates gene expression by targeting mRNA. It plays a key role in the temperature-dependent sex determination of Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis), a reptile whose sex is determined solely by the temperature during the incubation period and remains stable thereafter. However, the potential function of miRNAs in the gonads of adult Chinese alligators is still unclear. Here, we prepared and sequenced sRNA libraries of adult female and male alligator gonads, from breeding (in summer) and hibernating (in winter) animals. We obtained 130 conserved miRNAs and 683 novel miRNAs, which were assessed for sex bias in summer and winter; a total of 65 miRNAs that maintained sex bias in both seasons were identified. A regulatory network of sex-biased miRNAs and genes was constructed. Sex-biased miRNAs targeted multiple genes in the meiosis pathway of adult Chinese alligator oocytes and the antagonistic gonadal function maintenance pathway, such as MOS, MYT1, DMRT1, and GDF9. Our study emphasizes the function of miRNA in the epigenetic mechanisms of sex maintenance in crocodilians.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meng-Yuan Hu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Biosystems Homeostasis and Protection, State Conservation Centre for Gene Resources of Endangered Wildlife, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jun Yu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Biosystems Homeostasis and Protection, State Conservation Centre for Gene Resources of Endangered Wildlife, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jian-Qing Lin
- MOE Key Laboratory of Biosystems Homeostasis and Protection, State Conservation Centre for Gene Resources of Endangered Wildlife, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Marine Biotechnology, Institute of Marine Science, Shantou University, Shantou, China
| | - Sheng-Guo Fang
- MOE Key Laboratory of Biosystems Homeostasis and Protection, State Conservation Centre for Gene Resources of Endangered Wildlife, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
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20
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Oda A, Inoue S, Kaneko R, Narita Y, Shiono S, Kaneko T, Tseng YC, Ohtani-Kaneko R. Involvement of IGF-1R-PI3K-AKT-mTOR pathway in increased number of GnRH3 neurons during androgen-induced sex reversal of the brain in female tilapia. Sci Rep 2022; 12:2450. [PMID: 35165334 PMCID: PMC8844422 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-06384-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2021] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The neuroplastic mechanism of sex reversal in the fish brain remains unclear due to the difficulty in identifying the key neurons involved. Mozambique tilapia show different reproductive behaviours between sexes; males build circular breeding nests while females hold and brood fertilized eggs in their mouth. In tilapia, gonadotropin-releasing hormone 3 (GnRH3) neurons, located in the terminal nerve, regulate male reproductive behaviour. Mature males have more GnRH3 neurons than mature females, and these neurons have been indicated to play a key role in the androgen-induced female-to-male sex reversal of the brain. We aimed to elucidate the signalling pathway involved in the androgen-induced increase in GnRH3 neurons in mature female tilapia. Applying inhibitors to organotypic cultures of brain slices, we showed that the insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 receptor (IGF-1R)/PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway contributed to the androgen-induced increase in GnRH3 neurons. The involvement of IGF-1 and IGF-1R in 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT)-induced development of GnRH3 neurons was supported by an increase in Igf-1 mRNA shortly after 11-KT treatment, the increase of GnRH3 neurons after IGF-1 treatment and the expression of IGF-1R in GnRH3 neurons. Our findings highlight the involvement of IGF-1 and its downstream signalling pathway in the sex reversal of the tilapia brain.
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21
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Shen X, Yan H, Jiang J, Li W, Xiong Y, Liu Q, Liu Y. Profile of gene expression changes during estrodiol-17β-induced feminization in the Takifugu rubripes brain. BMC Genomics 2021; 22:851. [PMID: 34819041 PMCID: PMC8614003 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-021-08158-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background As the critical tissue of the central nervous system, the brain has been found to be involved in gonad development. Previous studies have suggested that gonadal fate may be affected by the brain. Identifying brain-specific molecular changes that occur during estrodiol-17β (E2) -induced feminization is crucial to our understanding of the molecular control of sex differentiation by the brains of fish. Results In this study, the differential transcriptomic responses of the Takifugu rubripes larvae brain were compared after E2 treatment for 55 days. Our results showed that 514 genes were differentially expressed between E2-treated-XX (E-XX) and Control-XX (C-XX) T. rubripes, while 362 genes were differentially expressed between E2-treated-XY (E-XY) and Control-XY (C-XY). For example, the expression of cyp19a1b, gnrh1 and pgr was significantly up-regulated, while st, sl, tshβ, prl and pit-1, which belong to the growth hormone/prolactin family, were significantly down-regulated after E2 treatment, in both sexes. The arntl1, bhlbe, nr1d2, per1b, per3, cry1, cipc and ciart genes, which are involved in the circadian rhythm, were also found to be altered. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs), which were identified between E-XX and C-XX, were significantly enriched in neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction, arachidonic acid metabolism, cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction and the calcium signaling pathway. The DEGs that were identified between E-XY and C-XY were significantly enriched in tyrosine metabolism, phenylalanine metabolism, arachidonic acid metabolism and linoleic acid metabolism. Conclusion A number of genes and pathways were identified in the brain of E2-treated T. rubripes larvae by RNA-seq. It provided the opportunity for further study on the possible involvement of networks in the brain-pituitary-gonadal axis in sex differentiation in T. rubripes. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-021-08158-0.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xufang Shen
- College of Life Sciences, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, 116029, Liaoning, China.,Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture (Dalian Ocean University) Ministry of Education, Dalian, 116023, China
| | - Hongwei Yan
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, 116023, Liaoning, China.
| | - Jieming Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture (Dalian Ocean University) Ministry of Education, Dalian, 116023, China.,College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, 116023, Liaoning, China
| | - Weiyuan Li
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, 116023, Liaoning, China
| | - Yuyu Xiong
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture (Dalian Ocean University) Ministry of Education, Dalian, 116023, China.,College of Marine Science and Environment Engineering, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, 116023, Liaoning, China
| | - Qi Liu
- College of Marine Science and Environment Engineering, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, 116023, Liaoning, China.
| | - Ying Liu
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture (Dalian Ocean University) Ministry of Education, Dalian, 116023, China.,College of Marine Science and Environment Engineering, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, 116023, Liaoning, China
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22
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Goikoetxea A, Muncaster S, Todd EV, Lokman PM, Robertson HA, De Farias E Moraes CE, Damsteegt EL, Gemmell NJ. A new experimental model for the investigation of sequential hermaphroditism. Sci Rep 2021; 11:22881. [PMID: 34819550 PMCID: PMC8613207 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-02063-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The stunning sexual transformation commonly triggered by age, size or social context in some fishes is one of the best examples of phenotypic plasticity thus far described. To date our understanding of this process is dominated by studies on a handful of subtropical and tropical teleosts, often in wild settings. Here we have established the protogynous New Zealand spotty wrasse, Notolabrus celidotus, as a temperate model for the experimental investigation of sex change. Captive fish were induced to change sex using aromatase inhibition or manipulation of social groups. Complete female-to-male transition occurred over 60 days in both cases and time-series sampling was used to quantify changes in hormone production, gene expression and gonadal cellular anatomy. Early-stage decreases in plasma 17β-estradiol (E2) concentrations or gonadal aromatase (cyp19a1a) expression were not detected in spotty wrasse, despite these being commonly associated with the onset of sex change in subtropical and tropical protogynous (female-to-male) hermaphrodites. In contrast, expression of the masculinising factor amh (anti-Müllerian hormone) increased during early sex change, implying a potential role as a proximate trigger for masculinisation. Collectively, these data provide a foundation for the spotty wrasse as a temperate teleost model to study sex change and cell fate in vertebrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Goikoetxea
- Department of Anatomy, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
- MARBEC Univ Montpellier, CNRS, Ifremer, IRD, Palavas-Les-Flots, France
| | - S Muncaster
- Environmental Management Group, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, Tauranga, New Zealand.
- School of Science, University of Waikato, Tauranga, New Zealand.
| | - E V Todd
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
| | - P M Lokman
- Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - H A Robertson
- Environmental Management Group, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, Tauranga, New Zealand
| | - C E De Farias E Moraes
- Environmental Management Group, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, Tauranga, New Zealand
| | - E L Damsteegt
- Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - N J Gemmell
- Department of Anatomy, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
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23
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Vissio PG, Di Yorio MP, Pérez-Sirkin DI, Somoza GM, Tsutsui K, Sallemi JE. Developmental aspects of the hypothalamic-pituitary network related to reproduction in teleost fish. Front Neuroendocrinol 2021; 63:100948. [PMID: 34678303 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2021.100948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Revised: 08/27/2021] [Accepted: 10/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis is the main system that regulates reproduction in vertebrates through a complex network that involves different neuropeptides, neurotransmitters, and pituitary hormones. Considering that this axis is established early on life, the main goal of the present work is to gather information on its development and the actions of its components during early life stages. This review focuses on fish because their neuroanatomical characteristics make them excellent models to study neuroendocrine systems. The following points are discussed: i) developmental functions of the neuroendocrine components of this network, and ii) developmental disruptions that may impact adult reproduction. The importance of the components of this network and their susceptibility to external/internal signals that can alter their specific early functions and/or even the establishment of the reproductive axis, indicate that more studies are necessary to understand this complex and dynamic network.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paula G Vissio
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina; CONICET - Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - María P Di Yorio
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina; CONICET - Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Daniela I Pérez-Sirkin
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina; CONICET - Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Gustavo M Somoza
- Instituto Tecnológico de Chascomús (CONICET-UNSAM), Chascomús, Argentina
| | - Kazuyoshi Tsutsui
- Department of Biology and Center for Medical Life Science, Waseda University, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8480, Japan; Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University, Kagamiyama 1-7-1, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8521, Japan
| | - Julieta E Sallemi
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina; CONICET - Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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24
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Yan H, Shen X, Jiang J, Zhang L, Yuan Z, Wu Y, Liu Q, Liu Y. Gene Expression of Takifugu rubripes Gonads During AI- or MT-induced Masculinization and E2-induced Feminization. Endocrinology 2021; 162:6218011. [PMID: 33831176 DOI: 10.1210/endocr/bqab068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2020] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Elucidating the global molecular changes that occur during aromatase inhibitor (AI)- or 17α-methyltestosterone (MT)-induced masculinization and estradiol-17β (E2)-induced feminization is critical to understanding the roles that endocrine and genetic factors play in regulating the process of sex differentiation in fish. Here, fugu larvae were treated with AI (letrozole), MT, or E2 from 25 to 80 days after hatching (dah), and gonadal transcriptomic analysis at 80 dah was performed. The expression of dmrt1, gsdf, foxl2, and other key genes (star, hsd3b1, cyp11c1, cyp19a1a, etc.) involved in the steroid hormone biosynthesis pathway were found be altered. The expression of dmrt1, gsdf, cyp19a1a, and foxl2 was further verified by quantitative polymerase chain reaction. In the control group, the expression of dmrt1 and gsdf was significantly higher in XY larvae than in XX larvae, while the expression of foxl2 and cyp19a1a was significantly higher in XX larvae than in XY larvae (P < .05). AI treatment suppressed the expression of foxl2 and cyp19a1a, and induced the expression of dmrt1 and gsdf in XX larvae. MT treatment suppressed the expression of foxl2, cyp19a1a, dmrt1, and gsdf in XX larvae. E2 treatment suppressed the expression of dmrt1 and gsdf, but did not restore the expression of foxl2 and cyp19a1a in XY larvae. The shared response following AI, MT, and E2 treatment suggested that these genes are essential for sex differentiation. This finding offers some insight into AI or MT-induced masculinization, and E2-induced femininization in fugu.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongwei Yan
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, Liaoning 116023, China
| | - Xufang Shen
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, 116023, Dalian, China
- College of Life Sciences, Liaoning Normal university, Dalian, Liaoning 116000, China
| | - Jieming Jiang
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, Liaoning 116023, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, 116023, Dalian, China
| | - Lei Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, 116023, Dalian, China
- College of Marine Science and Environment Engineering, Dalian Ocean University, 116023, Dalian, Liaoning, China
| | - Zhen Yuan
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, Liaoning 116023, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, 116023, Dalian, China
| | - Yumeng Wu
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, Liaoning 116023, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, 116023, Dalian, China
| | - Qi Liu
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, 116023, Dalian, China
- College of Marine Science and Environment Engineering, Dalian Ocean University, 116023, Dalian, Liaoning, China
| | - Ying Liu
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, 116023, Dalian, China
- College of Marine Science and Environment Engineering, Dalian Ocean University, 116023, Dalian, Liaoning, China
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25
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Stöck M, Kratochvíl L, Kuhl H, Rovatsos M, Evans BJ, Suh A, Valenzuela N, Veyrunes F, Zhou Q, Gamble T, Capel B, Schartl M, Guiguen Y. A brief review of vertebrate sex evolution with a pledge for integrative research: towards ' sexomics'. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20200426. [PMID: 34247497 PMCID: PMC8293304 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Triggers and biological processes controlling male or female gonadal differentiation vary in vertebrates, with sex determination (SD) governed by environmental factors or simple to complex genetic mechanisms that evolved repeatedly and independently in various groups. Here, we review sex evolution across major clades of vertebrates with information on SD, sexual development and reproductive modes. We offer an up-to-date review of divergence times, species diversity, genomic resources, genome size, occurrence and nature of polyploids, SD systems, sex chromosomes, SD genes, dosage compensation and sex-biased gene expression. Advances in sequencing technologies now enable us to study the evolution of SD at broader evolutionary scales, and we now hope to pursue a sexomics integrative research initiative across vertebrates. The vertebrate sexome comprises interdisciplinary and integrated information on sexual differentiation, development and reproduction at all biological levels, from genomes, transcriptomes and proteomes, to the organs involved in sexual and sex-specific processes, including gonads, secondary sex organs and those with transcriptional sex-bias. The sexome also includes ontogenetic and behavioural aspects of sexual differentiation, including malfunction and impairment of SD, sexual differentiation and fertility. Starting from data generated by high-throughput approaches, we encourage others to contribute expertise to building understanding of the sexomes of many key vertebrate species. This article is part of the theme issue 'Challenging the paradigm in sex chromosome evolution: empirical and theoretical insights with a focus on vertebrates (Part I)'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Stöck
- Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries—IGB (Forschungsverbund Berlin), Müggelseedamm 301, 12587 Berlin, Germany
- Amphibian Research Center, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8526, Japan
| | - Lukáš Kratochvíl
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 12844 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Heiner Kuhl
- Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries—IGB (Forschungsverbund Berlin), Müggelseedamm 301, 12587 Berlin, Germany
| | - Michail Rovatsos
- Amphibian Research Center, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8526, Japan
| | - Ben J. Evans
- Department of Biology, McMaster University, Life Sciences Building Room 328, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8S 4K1
| | - Alexander Suh
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TU, UK
- Department of Organismal Biology—Systematic Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Science for Life Laboratory, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18D, 75236 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Nicole Valenzuela
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA
| | - Frédéric Veyrunes
- Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier, ISEM UMR 5554 (CNRS/Université de Montpellier/IRD/EPHE), Montpellier, France
| | - Qi Zhou
- MOE Laboratory of Biosystems Homeostasis and Protection and Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Cancer Molecular Cell Biology, Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310058, People's Republic of China
- Department of Neuroscience and Developmental Biology, University of Vienna, A-1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Tony Gamble
- Department of Biological Sciences, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| | - Blanche Capel
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Manfred Schartl
- Developmental Biochemistry, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
- The Xiphophorus Genetic Stock Center, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666, USA
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26
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Renn SC, Hurd PL. Epigenetic Regulation and Environmental Sex Determination in Cichlid Fishes. Sex Dev 2021; 15:93-107. [PMID: 34433170 PMCID: PMC8440468 DOI: 10.1159/000517197] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2021] [Accepted: 05/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Studying environmental sex determination (ESD) in cichlids provides a phylogenetic and comparative approach to understand the evolution of the underlying mechanisms, their impact on the evolution of the overlying systems, and the neuroethology of life history strategies. Natural selection normally favors parents who invest equally in the development of male and female offspring, but evolution may favor deviations from this 50:50 ratio when environmental conditions produce an advantage for doing so. Many species of cichlids demonstrate ESD in response to water chemistry (temperature, pH, and oxygen concentration). The relative strengths of and the exact interactions between these factors vary between congeners, demonstrating genetic variation in sensitivity. The presence of sizable proportions of the less common sex towards the environmental extremes in most species strongly suggests the presence of some genetic sex-determining loci acting in parallel with the ESD factors. Sex determination and differentiation in these species does not seem to result in the organization of a final and irreversible sexual fate, so much as a life-long ongoing battle between competing male- and female-determining genetic and hormonal networks governed by epigenetic factors. We discuss what is and is not known about the epigenetic mechanism behind the differentiation of both gonads and sex differences in the brain. Beyond the well-studied tilapia species, the 2 best-studied dwarf cichlid systems showing ESD are the South American genus Apistogramma and the West African genus Pelvicachromis. Both species demonstrate male morphs with alternative reproductive tactics. We discuss the further neuroethology opportunities such systems provide to the study of epigenetics of alternative life history strategies and other behavioral variation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Peter L Hurd
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, CA
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, CA
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27
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Piferrer F. Epigenetic mechanisms in sex determination and in the evolutionary transitions between sexual systems. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20200110. [PMID: 34247505 PMCID: PMC8273503 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The hypothesis that epigenetic mechanisms of gene expression regulation have two main roles in vertebrate sex is presented. First, and within a given generation, by contributing to the acquisition and maintenance of (i) the male or female function once during the lifetime in individuals of gonochoristic species; and (ii) the male and female function in the same individual, either at the same time in simultaneous hermaphrodites, or first as one sex and then as the other in sequential hermaphrodites. Second, if environmental conditions change, epigenetic mechanisms may have also a role across generations, by providing the necessary phenotypic plasticity to facilitate the transition: (i) from one sexual system to another, or (ii) from one sex-determining mechanism to another. Furthermore, if the environmental change lasts enough time, epimutations could facilitate assimilation into genetic changes that stabilize the new sexual system or sex-determining mechanism. Examples supporting these assertions are presented, caveats or difficulties and knowledge gaps identified, and possible ways to test this hypothesis suggested. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Challenging the paradigm in sex chromosome evolution: empirical and theoretical insights with a focus on vertebrates (Part I)’.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesc Piferrer
- Institut de Ciències del Mar (ICM), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Passeig Marítim, 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
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28
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Casas L, Saborido-Rey F. Environmental Cues and Mechanisms Underpinning Sex Change in Fish. Sex Dev 2021; 15:108-121. [PMID: 34111868 DOI: 10.1159/000515274] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2020] [Accepted: 02/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Fishes are the only vertebrates that undergo sex change during their lifetime, but even within this group, a unique reproductive strategy is displayed by only 1.5% of the teleosts. This lability in alternating sexual fate is the result of the simultaneous suppression and activation of opposing male and female networks. Here, we provide a brief review summarizing recent advances in our understanding of the environmental cues that trigger sex change and their perception, integration, and translation into molecular cascades that convert the sex of an individual. We particularly focus on molecular events underpinning the complex behavioral and morphological transformation involved in sex change, dissecting the main molecular players and regulatory networks that shape the transformation of one sex into the opposite. We show that histological changes and molecular pathways governing gonadal reorganization are better described than the neuroendocrine basis of sex change and that, despite important advances, information is lacking for the majority of hermaphrodite species. We highlight significant gaps in our knowledge of how sex change takes place and suggest future research directions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Casas
- Ecology and Marine Resources, Institute of Marine Research (IIM-CSIC), Vigo, Spain
| | - Fran Saborido-Rey
- Ecology and Marine Resources, Institute of Marine Research (IIM-CSIC), Vigo, Spain
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29
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Chen J, Peng C, Huang J, Shi H, Xiao L, Tang L, Lin H, Li S, Zhang Y. Physical interactions facilitate sex change in the protogynous orange-spotted grouper, Epinephelus coioides. JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2021; 98:1308-1320. [PMID: 33377528 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.14663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2020] [Revised: 12/15/2020] [Accepted: 12/29/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Sex change in teleost fishes is commonly regulated by social factors. In species that exhibit protogynous sex change, such as the orange-spotted grouper Epinephelus coioides, when the dominant males are removed from the social group, the most dominant female initiates sex change. The aim of this study was to determine the regulatory mechanisms of socially controlled sex change in E. coioides. We investigated the seasonal variation in social behaviours and sex change throughout the reproductive cycle of E. coioides, and defined the behaviour pattern of this fish during the establishment of a dominance hierarchy. The social behaviours and sex change in this fish were affected by season, and only occurred during the prebreeding season and breeding season. Therefore, a series of sensory isolation experiments was conducted during the breeding season to determine the role of physical, visual and olfactory cues in mediating socially controlled sex change. The results demonstrated that physical interactions between individuals in the social groups were crucial for the initiation and completion of sex change, whereas visual and olfactory cues alone were insufficient in stimulating sex change in dominant females. In addition, we propose that the steroid hormones 11-ketotestosterone and cortisol are involved in regulating the initiation of socially controlled sex change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaxing Chen
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory, Zhanjiang, China
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Cheng Peng
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Guangdong Institute of Applied Biological Resources, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jingjun Huang
- College of Life Sciences, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming, China
| | - Herong Shi
- Marine Fisheries Development Center of Guangdong Province, Huizhou, China
| | - Ling Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Lin Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Haoran Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shuisheng Li
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory, Zhanjiang, China
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yong Zhang
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory, Zhanjiang, China
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Marine Fisheries Development Center of Guangdong Province, Huizhou, China
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Baudach A, Vilcinskas A. The European Map Butterfly Araschnia levana as a Model to Study the Molecular Basis and Evolutionary Ecology of Seasonal Polyphenism. INSECTS 2021; 12:insects12040325. [PMID: 33917601 PMCID: PMC8067495 DOI: 10.3390/insects12040325] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2021] [Revised: 03/28/2021] [Accepted: 04/02/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The European map butterfly Araschnia levana is a well-known example of seasonal polyphenism. Spring and summer imagoes exhibit distinct morphological phenotypes. Key environmental factors responsible for the expression of different morphs are day length and temperature. Larval exposure to light for more than 16 h per day entails direct development and results in the adult f. prorsa summer phenotype. Less than 15.5 h per day increasingly promotes diapause and the adult f. levana spring phenotype. The phenotype depends on the timing of the release of 20-hydroxyecdysone in pupae. Release within the first days after pupation potentially inhibits the default "levana-gene-expression-profile" because pre-pupae destined for diapause or subitaneous development have unique transcriptomic programs. Moreover, multiple microRNAs and their targets are differentially regulated during the larval and pupal stages, and candidates for diapause maintenance, duration, and phenotype determination have been identified. However, the complete pathway from photoreception to timekeeping and diapause or subitaneous development remains unclear. Beside the wing polyphenism, the hormonal and epigenetic modifications of the two phenotypes also include differences in biomechanical design and immunocompetence. Here, we discuss research on the physiological and molecular basis of polyphenism in A. levana, including hormonal control, epigenetic regulation, and the effect of ecological parameters on developmental fate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arne Baudach
- Institute for Insect Biotechnology, Justus-Liebig University of Giessen, 35392 Giessen, Germany;
| | - Andreas Vilcinskas
- Department of Bioresources, Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology, Ohlebergsweg 12, 35392 Giessen, Germany
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +49-641-99-37600
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Ogawa S, Pfaff DW, Parhar IS. Fish as a model in social neuroscience: conservation and diversity in the social brain network. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2021; 96:999-1020. [PMID: 33559323 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12689] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2019] [Revised: 01/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Mechanisms for fish social behaviours involve a social brain network (SBN) which is evolutionarily conserved among vertebrates. However, considerable diversity is observed in the actual behaviour patterns amongst nearly 30000 fish species. The huge variation found in socio-sexual behaviours and strategies is likely generated by a morphologically and genetically well-conserved small forebrain system. Hence, teleost fish provide a useful model to study the fundamental mechanisms underlying social brain functions. Herein we review the foundations underlying fish social behaviours including sensory, hormonal, molecular and neuroanatomical features. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons clearly play important roles, but the participation of vasotocin and isotocin is also highlighted. Genetic investigations of developing fish brain have revealed the molecular complexity of neural development of the SBN. In addition to straightforward social behaviours such as sex and aggression, new experiments have revealed higher order and unique phenomena such as social eavesdropping and social buffering in fish. Finally, observations interpreted as 'collective cognition' in fish can likely be explained by careful observation of sensory determinants and analyses using the dynamics of quantitative scaling. Understanding of the functions of the SBN in fish provide clues for understanding the origin and evolution of higher social functions in vertebrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satoshi Ogawa
- Brain Research Institute, Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, 47500, Malaysia
| | - Donald W Pfaff
- Laboratory of Neurobiology and Behavior, Rockefeller University, New York, NY, 10065, U.S.A
| | - Ishwar S Parhar
- Brain Research Institute, Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, 47500, Malaysia
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Yuan Z, Shen X, Yan H, Jiang J, Liu B, Zhang L, Wu Y, Liu Y, Liu Q. Effects of the Thyroid Endocrine System on Gonadal Sex Ratios and Sex-Related Gene Expression in the Pufferfish Takifugu rubripes. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2021; 12:674954. [PMID: 34025585 PMCID: PMC8139168 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2021.674954] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2021] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
To examine the effect and mechanism of thyroid hormone on gonadal sex differentiation, Takifugu rubripes larvae were treated with goitrogen (methimazole, MET, 1000 g/g), and thyroxine (T4, 2nM) from 25 to 80 days after hatching (dah). Gonadal histology and sex ratios of fish were then determined at 80 dah. MET treatment induced masculinization, but T4 treatment did not induce feminization in T. rubripes larvae. Transcriptomic analysis of gonads at 80 dah was then conducted. Among the large number of differentially expressed genes between the groups, the expression of foxl2, cyp19a1a, and dmrt1 was altered. The expression of foxl2, cyp19a1a, dmrt1 and gsdf at 25, 40, 55 days after treatment (dat) was further analyzed by qPCR. MET treatment suppressed the expression of foxl2 and cyp19a1a, and induced the expression of dmrt1 in genetic females (p < 0.05). Additionally, T4 treatment induced an increase in the expression of cyp19a1a in genetic XY gonads only at 25 dat. However, the increase in cyp19a1a expression did not continue to 40 and 55 dat. This may explain why feminization of larvae was not found in the T4-treated group. Thus, the present study provides the first evidence that MET treatment causes masculinization in teleost fish. The effects of MET-induced masculinization in T. rubripes may act primarily via suppression of the expression of foxl2 and cyp19a1a, and stimulation of the expression of dmrt1. Moreover, the effects of higher concentrations of T4 or different concentrations of T3, on sex differentiation require further testing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen Yuan
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, Dalian, China
| | - Xufang Shen
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, Dalian, China
- College of Life Science, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
| | - Hongwei Yan
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, Dalian, China
- *Correspondence: Hongwei Yan, ; Qi Liu,
| | - Jieming Jiang
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, Dalian, China
| | - Binwei Liu
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, Dalian, China
| | - Lei Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, Dalian, China
- College of Marine Science and Environment Engineering, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
| | - Yumeng Wu
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, Dalian, China
| | - Ying Liu
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, Dalian, China
- College of Marine Science and Environment Engineering, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
| | - Qi Liu
- Key Laboratory of Environment Controlled Aquaculture, Ministry of Education, Dalian, China
- College of Marine Science and Environment Engineering, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
- *Correspondence: Hongwei Yan, ; Qi Liu,
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Rousseau K, Prunet P, Dufour S. Special features of neuroendocrine interactions between stress and reproduction in teleosts. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2021; 300:113634. [PMID: 33045232 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2020.113634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2020] [Revised: 09/10/2020] [Accepted: 09/20/2020] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Stress and reproduction are both essential functions for vertebrate survival, ensuring on one side adaptative responses to environmental changes and potential life threats, and on the other side production of progeny. With more than 25,000 species, teleosts constitute the largest group of extant vertebrates, and exhibit a large diversity of life cycles, environmental conditions and regulatory processes. Interactions between stress and reproduction are a growing concern both for conservation of fish biodiversity in the frame of global changes and for the development of sustainability of aquaculture including fish welfare. In teleosts, as in other vertebrates, adverse effects of stress on reproduction have been largely documented and will be shortly overviewed. Unexpectedly, stress notably via cortisol, may also facilitate reproductive function in some teleost species in relation to their peculiar life cyles and this review will provide some examples. Our review will then mainly address the neuroendocrine axes involved in the control of stress and reproduction, namely the corticotropic and gonadotropic axes, as well as their interactions. After reporting some anatomo-functional specificities of the neuroendocrine systems in teleosts, we will describe the major actors of the corticotropic and gonadotropic axes at the brain-pituitary-peripheral glands (interrenals and gonads) levels, with a special focus on the impact of teleost-specific whole genome duplication (3R) on the number of paralogs and their potential differential functions. We will finally review the current knowledge on the neuroendocrine mechanisms of the various interactions between stress and reproduction at different levels of the two axes in teleosts in a comparative and evolutionary perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karine Rousseau
- Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Research Unit BOREA, Biology of Aquatic Organisms and Ecosystems, CNRS, IRD, SU, UCN, UA, Paris, France
| | - Patrick Prunet
- INRAE, UR1037, Laboratoire de Physiologie et de Génomique des Poissons (LPGP), Rennes, France
| | - Sylvie Dufour
- Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Research Unit BOREA, Biology of Aquatic Organisms and Ecosystems, CNRS, IRD, SU, UCN, UA, Paris, France.
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Oliveira CCV, Fatsini E, Fernández I, Anjos C, Chauvigné F, Cerdà J, Mjelle R, Fernandes JMO, Cabrita E. Kisspeptin Influences the Reproductive Axis and Circulating Levels of microRNAs in Senegalese Sole. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21239051. [PMID: 33260781 PMCID: PMC7730343 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21239051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2020] [Revised: 11/25/2020] [Accepted: 11/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Kisspeptin regulates puberty and reproduction onset, acting upstream of the brain–pituitary–gonad (HPG) axis. This study aimed to test a kisspeptin-based hormonal therapy on cultured Senegalese sole (G1) breeders, known to have reproductive dysfunctions. A single intramuscular injection of KISS2-10 decapeptide (250 µg/kg) was tested in females and males during the reproductive season, and gonad maturation, sperm motility, plasma levels of gonadotropins (Fsh and Lh) and sex steroids (11-ketotestosterone, testosterone and estradiol), as well as changes in small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs) in plasma, were investigated. Fsh, Lh, and testosterone levels increased after kisspeptin injection in both sexes, while sperm analysis did not show differences between groups. Let7e, miR-199a-3p and miR-100-5p were differentially expressed in females, while miR-1-3p miRNA was up-regulated in kisspeptin-treated males. In silico prediction of mRNAs targeted by miRNAs revealed that kisspeptin treatment might affect paracellular transporters, regulate structural and functional polarity of cells, neural networks and intracellular trafficking in Senegalese sole females; also, DNA methylation and sphingolipid metabolism might be altered in kisspeptin-treated males. Results demonstrated that kisspeptin stimulated gonadotropin and testosterone secretion in both sexes and induced an unanticipated alteration of plasma miRNAs, opening new research venues to understand how this neuropeptide impacts in fish HPG axis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catarina C. V. Oliveira
- Center of Marine Sciences-CCMAR, University of Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal; (E.F.); (C.A.)
- Correspondence: (C.C.V.O.); (E.C.)
| | - Elvira Fatsini
- Center of Marine Sciences-CCMAR, University of Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal; (E.F.); (C.A.)
| | - Ignacio Fernández
- Aquaculture Research Center, Agrarian Technological Institute of Castile and Leon, Ctra. Arévalo, s/n, 40196 Segovia, Spain;
| | - Catarina Anjos
- Center of Marine Sciences-CCMAR, University of Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal; (E.F.); (C.A.)
| | - François Chauvigné
- IRTA-Institute of Biotechnology and Biomedicine (IBB), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona, Spain; (F.C.); (J.C.)
| | - Joan Cerdà
- IRTA-Institute of Biotechnology and Biomedicine (IBB), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona, Spain; (F.C.); (J.C.)
| | - Robin Mjelle
- Faculty of Bioscience and Aquaculture, Nord University, 8049 Bodø, Norway; (R.M.); (J.M.O.F.)
| | - Jorge M. O. Fernandes
- Faculty of Bioscience and Aquaculture, Nord University, 8049 Bodø, Norway; (R.M.); (J.M.O.F.)
| | - Elsa Cabrita
- Center of Marine Sciences-CCMAR, University of Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal; (E.F.); (C.A.)
- Correspondence: (C.C.V.O.); (E.C.)
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Goikoetxea A, Damsteegt EL, Todd EV, McNaughton A, Gemmell NJ, Lokman PM. An in vitro ovarian explant culture system to examine sex change in a hermaphroditic fish. PeerJ 2020; 8:e10323. [PMID: 33240644 PMCID: PMC7666549 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.10323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Many teleost fishes undergo natural sex change, and elucidating the physiological and molecular controls of this process offers unique opportunities not only to develop methods of controlling sex in aquaculture settings, but to better understand vertebrate sexual development more broadly. Induction of sex change in some sequentially hermaphroditic or gonochoristic fish can be achieved in vivo through social manipulation, inhibition of aromatase activity, or steroid treatment. However, the induction of sex change in vitro has been largely unexplored. In this study, we established an in vitro culture system for ovarian explants in serum-free medium for a model sequential hermaphrodite, the New Zealand spotty wrasse (Notolabrus celidotus). This culture technique enabled evaluating the effect of various treatments with 17β-estradiol (E2), 11-ketotestosterone (11KT) or cortisol (CORT) on spotty wrasse ovarian architecture for 21 days. A quantitative approach to measuring the degree of ovarian atresia within histological images was also developed, using pixel-based machine learning software. Ovarian atresia likely due to culture was observed across all treatments including no-hormone controls, but was minimised with treatment of at least 10 ng/mL E2. Neither 11KT nor CORT administration induced proliferation of spermatogonia (i.e., sex change) in the cultured ovaries indicating culture beyond 21 days may be needed to induce sex change in vitro. The in vitro gonadal culture and analysis systems established here enable future studies investigating the paracrine role of sex steroids, glucocorticoids and a variety of other factors during gonadal sex change in fish.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Erin L Damsteegt
- Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - Erica V Todd
- School of Life and Environmental Science, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
| | | | - Neil J Gemmell
- Department of Anatomy, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - P Mark Lokman
- Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
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36
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Nagahama Y, Chakraborty T, Paul-Prasanth B, Ohta K, Nakamura M. Sex determination, gonadal sex differentiation, and plasticity in vertebrate species. Physiol Rev 2020; 101:1237-1308. [PMID: 33180655 DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00044.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
A diverse array of sex determination (SD) mechanisms, encompassing environmental to genetic, have been found to exist among vertebrates, covering a spectrum from fixed SD mechanisms (mammals) to functional sex change in fishes (sequential hermaphroditic fishes). A major landmark in vertebrate SD was the discovery of the SRY gene in 1990. Since that time, many attempts to clone an SRY ortholog from nonmammalian vertebrates remained unsuccessful, until 2002, when DMY/dmrt1by was discovered as the SD gene of a small fish, medaka. Surprisingly, however, DMY/dmrt1by was found in only 2 species among more than 20 species of medaka, suggesting a large diversity of SD genes among vertebrates. Considerable progress has been made over the last 3 decades, such that it is now possible to formulate reasonable paradigms of how SD and gonadal sex differentiation may work in some model vertebrate species. This review outlines our current understanding of vertebrate SD and gonadal sex differentiation, with a focus on the molecular and cellular mechanisms involved. An impressive number of genes and factors have been discovered that play important roles in testicular and ovarian differentiation. An antagonism between the male and female pathway genes exists in gonads during both sex differentiation and, surprisingly, even as adults, suggesting that, in addition to sex-changing fishes, gonochoristic vertebrates including mice maintain some degree of gonadal sexual plasticity into adulthood. Importantly, a review of various SD mechanisms among vertebrates suggests that this is the ideal biological event that can make us understand the evolutionary conundrums underlying speciation and species diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshitaka Nagahama
- Laboratory of Reproductive Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Japan.,South Ehime Fisheries Research Center, Ehime University, Ainan, Japan.,Faculty of Biological Science and Technology, Kanazawa University, Ishikawa, Japan
| | - Tapas Chakraborty
- Laboratory of Reproductive Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Japan.,South Ehime Fisheries Research Center, Ehime University, Ainan, Japan.,Laboratory of Marine Biology, Faculty of Agriculture, Kyushu University, Fukouka, Japan.,Karatsu Satellite of Aqua-Bioresource Innovation Center, Kyushu University, Karatsu, Japan
| | - Bindhu Paul-Prasanth
- Laboratory of Reproductive Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Japan.,Centre for Nanosciences and Molecular Medicine, Amrita Vishwa Vidapeetham, Kochi, Kerala, India
| | - Kohei Ohta
- Laboratory of Marine Biology, Faculty of Agriculture, Kyushu University, Fukouka, Japan
| | - Masaru Nakamura
- Sesoko Station, Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan.,Research Center, Okinawa Churashima Foundation, Okinawa, Japan
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Roux N, Salis P, Lee SH, Besseau L, Laudet V. Anemonefish, a model for Eco-Evo-Devo. EvoDevo 2020; 11:20. [PMID: 33042514 PMCID: PMC7539381 DOI: 10.1186/s13227-020-00166-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2020] [Accepted: 09/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Anemonefish, are a group of about 30 species of damselfish (Pomacentridae) that have long aroused the interest of coral reef fish ecologists. Combining a series of original biological traits and practical features in their breeding that are described in this paper, anemonefish are now emerging as an experimental system of interest for developmental biology, ecology and evolutionary sciences. They are small sized and relatively easy to breed in specific husbandries, unlike the large-sized marine fish used for aquaculture. Because they live in highly structured social groups in sea anemones, anemonefish allow addressing a series of relevant scientific questions such as the social control of growth and sex change, the mechanisms controlling symbiosis, the establishment and variation of complex color patterns, and the regulation of aging. Combined with the use of behavioral experiments, that can be performed in the lab or directly in the wild, as well as functional genetics and genomics, anemonefish provide an attractive experimental system for Eco-Evo-Devo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natacha Roux
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, UMR « Biologie Intégrative Des Organismes Marins », BIOM, 1, 66650 Banyuls-sur-Mer, France
| | - Pauline Salis
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, UMR « Biologie Intégrative Des Organismes Marins », BIOM, 1, 66650 Banyuls-sur-Mer, France
| | - Shu-Hua Lee
- Lab of Marine Eco-Evo-Devo, Marine Research Station, Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Laurence Besseau
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, UMR « Biologie Intégrative Des Organismes Marins », BIOM, 1, 66650 Banyuls-sur-Mer, France
| | - Vincent Laudet
- Lab of Marine Eco-Evo-Devo, Marine Research Station, Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.,Marine Eco-Evo-Devo Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna son, Okinawa, 904-0495 Japan
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38
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Peng C, Wang Q, Shi H, Chen J, Li S, Zhao H, Lin H, Yang J, Zhang Y. Natural sex change in mature protogynous orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides): gonadal restructuring, sex hormone shifts and gene profiles. JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2020; 97:785-793. [PMID: 32535923 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.14434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2020] [Revised: 05/31/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Sexual patterns of teleosts are extremely diverse and include both gonochorism and hermaphroditism. As a protogynous hermaphroditic fish, all orange-spotted groupers (Epinephelus coioides) develop directly into females, and some individuals change sex to become functional males later in life. This study investigated gonadal restructuring, shifts in sex hormone levels and gene profiles of cultured mature female groupers during the first (main) breeding season of 2019 in Huizhou, China (22° 42' 02.6″ N, 114° 32' 10.1″ E). Analysis of gonadal restructuring revealed that females with pre-vitellogenic ovaries underwent vitellogenesis, spawning and regression and then returned to the pre-vitellogenic stage in the late breeding season, at which point some changed sex to become males via the intersex gonad stage. A significant decrease in the level of serum 17β-estradiol (E2) was observed during ovary regression but not during sex change, whereas serum 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT) concentrations increased significantly during sex change with the highest concentration in newly developed males. Consistent with serum hormone changes, a significant decrease in cyp19a1a expression was observed during ovary regression but not during sex change, whereas the expression of cyp11c1 and hsd11b2 increased significantly during sex change. Interestingly, hsd11b2 but not cyp11c1 was significantly upregulated from the pre-vitellogenic ovary stage to the early intersex gonad stage. These results suggest that a decrease in serum E2 concentration and downregulation of cyp19a1a expression are not necessary to trigger the female-to-male transformation, whereas increased 11-KT concentration and upregulation of hsd11b2 expression may be key events for the initiation of sex change in the orange-spotted grouper.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheng Peng
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Guangdong Institute of Applied Biological Resources, Guangzhou, China
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Qing Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
- College of Marine Sciences, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Herong Shi
- Marine Fisheries Development Center of Guangdong Province, Huizhou, China
| | - Jiaxing Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shuisheng Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Huihong Zhao
- College of Marine Sciences, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Haoran Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jianchun Yang
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Guangdong Institute of Applied Biological Resources, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Marine Fisheries Development Center of Guangdong Province, Huizhou, China
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39
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Straková B, Rovatsos M, Kubička L, Kratochvíl L. Evolution of Sex Determination in Amniotes: Did Stress and Sequential Hermaphroditism Produce Environmental Determination? Bioessays 2020; 42:e2000050. [DOI: 10.1002/bies.202000050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2020] [Revised: 07/15/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Barbora Straková
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science Charles University Viničná 7 Praha 2 12844 Czech Republic
| | - Michail Rovatsos
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science Charles University Viničná 7 Praha 2 12844 Czech Republic
| | - Lukáš Kubička
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science Charles University Viničná 7 Praha 2 12844 Czech Republic
| | - Lukáš Kratochvíl
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science Charles University Viničná 7 Praha 2 12844 Czech Republic
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40
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Martinez-Bengochea A, Doretto L, Rosa IF, Oliveira MA, Silva C, Silva DMZA, Santos GR, Santos JSF, Avelar MM, Silva LV, Lucianelli-Junior D, Souza ERB, Silva RC, Stewart AB, Nakaghi LSO, Valentin FN, Nóbrega RH. Effects of 17β-estradiol on early gonadal development and expression of genes implicated in sexual differentiation of a South American teleost, Astyanax altiparanae. Comp Biochem Physiol B Biochem Mol Biol 2020; 248-249:110467. [PMID: 32628996 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpb.2020.110467] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2020] [Revised: 06/14/2020] [Accepted: 06/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Gonadal sex differentiation in teleost fish shows greater plasticity as compared to other vertebrates, as it can be influenced by a variety of factors such as exogenous sex steroids. Exogenous estrogens, such as 17β-estradiol (E2), can induce feminization when administered during early embryonic development. However, the mechanisms underlying the E2-induced feminization are not fully understood, especially in Neotropical species. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of E2 administration on the phenotypic sex characteristics, histological assessment of the gonads, and the expression of selected genes in Astyanax altiparanae exposed to dietary E2 prior to gonadal differentiation. At 4 days post-hatch (dph), groups of 30-40 undifferentiated larvae were fed with a diet containing varying amounts of E2 for 28 days, and fish were sampled at 90 dph. Previous studies revealed that ovary formation in A. altiparanae occurred at 58 dph, whereas the first sign of testis formation was found at 73 dph. In relation to the control, E2 exposure increased the proportion of phenotypic females in 120% and 148.4% for 4 and 6 mg E2/Kg, respectively. However, histological analysis revealed that treatments did not affect gonadal sex ratio between males and females, but induced intersex (testis-ova) in the group treated with 6 mg E2/Kg food. Treatment with E2 also altered gonadal transcript levels of a selected number of genes implicated in sexual differentiation. Males overexpressed dmrt1, sox9 and amh following E2 treatment as compared to control. Females showed increased mRNA levels of dmrt1 and sox9, which might be related to the down-regulation of cyp19a1a after E2 exposure. In summary, E2 exposure during early gonadal development affected male secondary characteristics without changing the gonadal sex ratio, and altered expression of genes implicated in sexual differentiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Martinez-Bengochea
- Reproductive and Molecular Biology Group, Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - L Doretto
- Reproductive and Molecular Biology Group, Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - I F Rosa
- Reproductive and Molecular Biology Group, Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - M A Oliveira
- Reproductive and Molecular Biology Group, Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - C Silva
- Reproductive and Molecular Biology Group, Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - D M Z A Silva
- Reproductive and Molecular Biology Group, Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - G R Santos
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, Faculty of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil; Aquaculture Center (CAUNESP), São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - J S F Santos
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, Faculty of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil; Aquaculture Center (CAUNESP), São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - M M Avelar
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, Faculty of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil; Aquaculture Center (CAUNESP), São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - L V Silva
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, Faculty of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil; Aquaculture Center (CAUNESP), São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - D Lucianelli-Junior
- Laboratório de Morfofisiologia da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade Federal do Pará, UFPA, Altamira, Pará, Brazil
| | - E R B Souza
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, Faculty of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil; Aquaculture Center (CAUNESP), São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - R C Silva
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, Faculty of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil; Aquaculture Center (CAUNESP), São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - A B Stewart
- Department of Orthopaedics Musculoskeletal Research, West Virginia University,USA
| | - L S O Nakaghi
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, Faculty of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil; Aquaculture Center (CAUNESP), São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - F N Valentin
- Laboratório de Morfofisiologia da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade Federal do Pará, UFPA, Altamira, Pará, Brazil.
| | - R H Nóbrega
- Reproductive and Molecular Biology Group, Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil.
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41
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Mamlouk GM, Dorris DM, Barrett LR, Meitzen J. Sex bias and omission in neuroscience research is influenced by research model and journal, but not reported NIH funding. Front Neuroendocrinol 2020; 57:100835. [PMID: 32070715 PMCID: PMC7225067 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2020.100835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2019] [Revised: 02/13/2020] [Accepted: 02/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Neuroscience research has historically demonstrated sex bias that favors male over female research subjects, as well as sex omission, which is the lack of reporting sex. Here we analyzed the status of sex bias and omission in neuroscience research published across six different journals in 2017. Regarding sex omission, 16% of articles did not report sex. Regarding sex bias, 52% of neuroscience articles reported using both males and females, albeit only 15% of articles using both males and females reported assessing sex as an experimental variable. Overrepresentation of the sole use of males compared to females persisted (26% versus 5%, respectively). Sex bias and omission differed across research models, but not by reported NIH funding status. Sex omission differed across journals. These findings represent the latest information regarding the complex status of sex in neuroscience research and illustrate the continued need for thoughtful and informed action to enhance scientific discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriella M Mamlouk
- Dept. of Biological Sciences, NC State University, Raleigh, NC, United States
| | - David M Dorris
- Dept. of Biological Sciences, NC State University, Raleigh, NC, United States
| | - Lily R Barrett
- Dept. of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, United States
| | - John Meitzen
- Dept. of Biological Sciences, NC State University, Raleigh, NC, United States; Center for Human Health and the Environment, NC State University, Raleigh, NC, United States.
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42
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Xiao L, Guo Y, Wang D, Zhao M, Hou X, Li S, Lin H, Zhang Y. Beta-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenase Genes in Orange-Spotted Grouper ( Epinephelus coioides): Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Analysis During Sex Reversal. Front Genet 2020; 11:161. [PMID: 32194632 PMCID: PMC7064643 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2020.00161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2019] [Accepted: 02/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (β-HSDs) are a group of steroidogenic enzymes that are involved in steroid biosynthesis and metabolism, and play a crucial role in mammalian physiology and development, including sex determination and differentiation. In the present study, a genome-wide analysis identified the numbers of β-hsd genes in orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides) (19), human (Homo sapiens) (22), mouse (Mus musculus) (24), chicken (Gallus gallus) (16), xenopus (Xenopus tropicalis) (24), coelacanth (Latimeria chalumnae) (17), spotted gar (Lepisosteus oculatus) (14), zebrafish (Danio rerio) (19), fugu (Takifugu rubripes) (19), tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) (19), medaka (Oryzias latipes) (19), stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) (17) and common carp (Cyprinus carpio) (27) samples. A comparative analysis revealed that the number of β-hsd genes in teleost fish was no greater than in tetrapods due to gene loss followed by a teleost-specific whole-genome duplication event. Based on transcriptome data from grouper brain and gonad samples during sex reversal, six β-hsd genes had relatively high expression levels in the brain, indicating that these genes may be required for neurogenesis or the maintenance of specific biological processes in the brain. In the gonad, two and eight β-hsd genes were up- and downregulated, respectively, indicating their important roles in sex reversal. Our results demonstrated that β-hsd genes may be involved in the sex reversal of grouper by regulating the synthesis and metabolism of sex steroid hormones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.,Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao, China
| | - Yin Guo
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Dengdong Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Mi Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xin Hou
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shuisheng Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhanjiang), Fisheries College, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, China
| | - Haoran Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.,Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao, China
| | - Yong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.,Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao, China.,Marine Fisheries Development Center of Guangdong Province, Huizhou, China
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43
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Oliveira CC, McStay E, Cabrita E, Castanheira MF, Migaud H, Dinis MT, Davie A. Investigating the kisspeptin system in the hermaphrodite teleost gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata). Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2020; 241:110624. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2019.110624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2019] [Revised: 11/17/2019] [Accepted: 11/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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44
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Chen L, Wang L, Cheng Q, Tu YX, Yang Z, Li RZ, Luo ZH, Chen ZX. Anti-masculinization induced by aromatase inhibitors in adult female zebrafish. BMC Genomics 2020; 21:22. [PMID: 31910818 PMCID: PMC6947999 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-019-6437-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2019] [Accepted: 12/29/2019] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Early sex differentiation genes of zebrafish remain an unsolved mystery due to the difficulty to distinguish the sex of juvenile zebrafish. However, aromatase inhibitors (AIs) could direct juvenile zebrafish sex differentiation to male and even induce ovary-to-testis reversal in adult zebrafish. Results In order to determine the transcriptomic changes of sex differentiation in juvenile zebrafish and early sex-reversal in adult zebrafish, we sequenced the transcriptomes of juvenile and adult zebrafish treated with AI exemestane (EM) for 32 days, when juvenile zebrafish sex differentiation finished. EM treatment in females up-regulated the expression of genes involved in estrogen metabolic process, female gamete generation and oogenesis, including gsdf, macf1a and paqr5a, while down-regulated the expression of vitellogenin (vtg) genes, including vtg6, vtg2, vtg4, and vtg7 due to the lower level of Estradiol (E2). Furthermore, EM-juveniles showed up-regulation in genes related to cell death and apoptosis, such as bcl2l16 and anax1c, while the control-juveniles exhibited up-regulation of genes involved in positive regulation of reproductive process and oocyte differentiation such as zar1 and zpcx. Moreover, EM-females showed higher enrichment than control females in genes involved in VEGF signaling pathway, glycosaminoglycan degradation, hedgehog signaling pathway, GnRH signaling pathway and steroid hormone biosynthesis. Conclusions Our study shows anti-masculinization in EM-treated adult females but not in EM-treated juveniles. This may be responsible for the lower sex plasticity in adults than juveniles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lu Chen
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China.,College of Biomedicine and Health, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Li Wang
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China.,College of Biomedicine and Health, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Qiwei Cheng
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China.,College of Biomedicine and Health, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Yi-Xuan Tu
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China.,College of Biomedicine and Health, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhuang Yang
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China.,College of Biomedicine and Health, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Run-Ze Li
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China.,College of Biomedicine and Health, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhi-Hui Luo
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China.,College of Biomedicine and Health, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhen-Xia Chen
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China. .,College of Biomedicine and Health, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, People's Republic of China.
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45
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Chen J, Peng C, Yu Z, Xiao L, Yu Q, Li S, Zhang H, Lin H, Zhang Y. The Administration of Cortisol Induces Female-to-Male Sex Change in the Protogynous Orange-Spotted Grouper, Epinephelus coioides. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2020; 11:12. [PMID: 32082256 PMCID: PMC7005586 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2020.00012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2019] [Accepted: 01/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In this study, we injected cortisol into the protogynous orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides) to investigate the role of this hormone in sex change. Following injection, we evaluated gonadal changes, serum levels of steroid hormones, and sex-related gene expression during the processes of cortisol-induced sex change and cortisol withdrawal in the orange-spotted grouper. Cortisol treatment caused the degeneration of oocytes and induced sex change in a dose-dependent manner. Over the long-term, we observed a significant increase in serum 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT) levels in all cortisol-treated groups, although levels of 17β-estradiol did not change significantly. Consistent with the elevation of serum 11-KT levels, the expression of genes related to testicular development was also significantly up-regulated in the cortisol-treated groups. Based on our results, we propose that cortisol may trigger masculinization by inducing the synthesis of 11-KT and by directly activating the expression of sex-related genes. Furthermore, we found that cortisol-induced sex change was not permanent and could be reversed after the withdrawal of cortisol treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaxing Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao, China
| | - Cheng Peng
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Guangdong Institute of Applied Biological Resources, Guangzhou, China
| | - Zeshu Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ling Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Qi Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shuisheng Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhanjiang), Fisheries College, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, China
- *Correspondence: Shuisheng Li
| | - Haifa Zhang
- Marine Fisheries Development Center of Guangdong Province, Huizhou, China
| | - Haoran Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao, China
| | - Yong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao, China
- Marine Fisheries Development Center of Guangdong Province, Huizhou, China
- Yong Zhang
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46
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Okubo K, Miyazoe D, Nishiike Y. A conceptual framework for understanding sexual differentiation of the teleost brain. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2019; 284:113129. [PMID: 30825478 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2019.02.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2018] [Revised: 02/08/2019] [Accepted: 02/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Vertebrate brains are sexually differentiated, giving rise to differences in various physiological and behavioral phenotypes between the sexes. In developing mammals and birds, the neural substrate underlying sex-dependent physiology and behavior undergoes an irreversible process of sexual differentiation due to the effects of perinatal gonadal steroids and sex chromosome complement. The differentiated neural substrate is then activated in the adult by the sex-specific steroid milieu to facilitate the expression of sex-typical phenotypes. However, this well-established concept does not hold for teleost fish, whose sexual phenotypes (behavioral or otherwise) are highly labile throughout life and can be reversed even in adulthood. Indeed, the available evidence suggests that, in teleosts, neither gonadal steroids early in development nor the sex chromosome complement contribute much to brain sexual differentiation; instead, steroids in adulthood serve to both differentiate the neural substrate and activate it to elicit sex-typical phenotypes in a transient and reversible manner. Evidence further suggests that marked sexual dimorphisms and adult steroid-dependent lability in the neural expression of sex steroid receptors constitute the primary molecular basis for sexual differentiation and lability of the teleost brain. The consequent sexually dimorphic but reversible steroid sensitivity in response to the adult steroid milieu may enable the teleost brain to maintain lifelong sexual lability and to undergo phenotypic sex reversal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kataaki Okubo
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan.
| | - Daichi Miyazoe
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
| | - Yuji Nishiike
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
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47
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Leitner N, Ben-Shahar Y. The neurogenetics of sexually dimorphic behaviors from a postdevelopmental perspective. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2019; 19:e12623. [PMID: 31674725 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Revised: 10/08/2019] [Accepted: 10/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Most sexually reproducing animal species are characterized by two morphologically and behaviorally distinct sexes. The genetic, molecular and cellular processes that produce sexual dimorphisms are phylogenetically diverse, though in most cases they are thought to occur early in development. In some species, however, sexual dimorphisms are manifested after development is complete, suggesting the intriguing hypothesis that sex, more generally, might be considered a continuous trait that is influenced by both developmental and postdevelopmental processes. Here, we explore how biological sex is defined at the genetic, neuronal and behavioral levels, its effects on neuronal development and function, and how it might lead to sexually dimorphic behavioral traits in health and disease. We also propose a unifying framework for understanding neuronal and behavioral sexual dimorphisms in the context of both developmental and postdevelopmental, physiological timescales. Together, these two temporally separate processes might drive sex-specific neuronal functions in sexually mature adults, particularly as it pertains to behavior in health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Leitner
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Yehuda Ben-Shahar
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
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48
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Ortega-Recalde O, Goikoetxea A, Hore TA, Todd EV, Gemmell NJ. The Genetics and Epigenetics of Sex Change in Fish. Annu Rev Anim Biosci 2019; 8:47-69. [PMID: 31525067 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-animal-021419-083634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Fish show extraordinary sexual plasticity, changing sex naturally as part of their life cycle or reversing sex because of environmental stressors. This plasticity shows that sexual fate is not an irreversible process but the result of an ongoing tug-of-war for supremacy between male and female signaling networks. The behavioral, gonadal, and morphological changes involved in this process are well described, yet the molecular events that underpin those changes remain poorly understood. Epigenetic modifications emerge as a critical link between environmental stimuli, the onset of sex change, and subsequent maintenance of sexual phenotype. Here we synthesize current knowledge of sex change, focusing on the genetic and epigenetic processes that are likely involved in the initiation and regulation of sex change. We anticipate that better understanding of sex change in fish will shed new light on sex determination and development in vertebrates and on how environmental perturbations affect sexual fate.
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49
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Yi TL, Pei MT, Yang DQ. Expression patterns of kiss2 and gpr54-2 in Monopterus albus suggest these genes may play a role in sex reversal in fish. FEBS Open Bio 2019; 9:1835-1844. [PMID: 31446680 PMCID: PMC6768111 DOI: 10.1002/2211-5463.12727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2019] [Revised: 08/04/2019] [Accepted: 08/23/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Due to its exceptionally small genome size and protogynous hermaphroditism, Monopterus albus has been proposed as a model for vertebrate sexual development. The Kiss/GPR54 system is a central regulator of sexual development in most vertebrates, but its role in sex reversal remains hypothetical. In contrast to mammals, fishes often possess more than one copy of the kiss and gpr54 genes. Our objectives were to identify all kiss/gpr54 genes in the genome of M. albus and to assess their involvement in sex reversal via their expression patterns (qPCR) in females, males, and intersex specimens. We identified only two genes: kiss2 and gpr54‐2. kiss2 expression was extremely high in the gonads of males, intermediate in females, and low in intersex; and reduced in all tissues of intersex. gpr54 expression was also extremely high in the gonads of males, high in intersex, but low in females. gpr54 expression in brain was high in all three sexes. In conclusion, (a) kiss1 has been functionally replaced in M. albus; (b) the functions of gpr54‐2 in brain are not sex‐specific; (c) kiss2 appears to undergo a ‘reset’ in the expression during the sex change; and (d) sex‐specific expression patterns in the gonads indicate that these two genes may play a role in sex reversal in fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ti-Lin Yi
- Yangtze University Engineering Research Center for Ecology and Agriculture Use of Wetland, Ministry of Education, Jingzhou, China.,School of Animal Science, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, China
| | - Meng-Ting Pei
- Hubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Monopterus albus, Jingzhou, China.,Hubei Zhongqing Aquaculture Industry Technology Research Institute and limited company, Jingzhou, 434026, China
| | - Dai-Qin Yang
- Yangtze University Engineering Research Center for Ecology and Agriculture Use of Wetland, Ministry of Education, Jingzhou, China.,School of Animal Science, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, China
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Hiraki-Kajiyama T, Yamashita J, Yokoyama K, Kikuchi Y, Nakajo M, Miyazoe D, Nishiike Y, Ishikawa K, Hosono K, Kawabata-Sakata Y, Ansai S, Kinoshita M, Nagahama Y, Okubo K. Neuropeptide B mediates female sexual receptivity in medaka fish, acting in a female-specific but reversible manner. eLife 2019; 8:39495. [PMID: 31383257 PMCID: PMC6684226 DOI: 10.7554/elife.39495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2018] [Accepted: 07/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Male and female animals display innate sex-specific mating behaviors. In teleost fish, altering the adult sex steroid milieu can effectively reverse sex-typical mating behaviors, suggesting remarkable sexual lability of their brains as adults. In the teleost medaka, neuropeptide B (NPB) is expressed female-specifically in the brain nuclei implicated in mating behavior. Here, we demonstrate that NPB is a direct mediator of estrogen action on female mating behavior, acting in a female-specific but reversible manner. Analysis of regulatory mechanisms revealed that the female-specific expression of NPB is dependent on direct transcriptional activation by estrogen via an estrogen-responsive element and is reversed in response to changes in the adult sex steroid milieu. Behavioral studies of NPB knockouts revealed that female-specific NBP mediates female receptivity to male courtship. The female-specific NPB signaling identified herein is presumably a critical element of the neural circuitry underlying sexual dimorphism and lability of mating behaviors in teleosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Towako Hiraki-Kajiyama
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.,Laboratory for Systems Molecular Ethology, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Wako, Japan
| | - Junpei Yamashita
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Keiko Yokoyama
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yukiko Kikuchi
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Mikoto Nakajo
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.,Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Daichi Miyazoe
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yuji Nishiike
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kaito Ishikawa
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kohei Hosono
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yukika Kawabata-Sakata
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.,Department of Pathophysiology, Tokyo Medical University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Satoshi Ansai
- Division of Applied Biosciences, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,Laboratory of Bioresources, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Japan
| | - Masato Kinoshita
- Division of Applied Biosciences, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Yoshitaka Nagahama
- Division of Reproductive Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Japan
| | - Kataaki Okubo
- Department of Aquatic Bioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
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