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Cheng X, Xiao K, Jiang W, Peng G, Chen P, Shu T, Huang H, Shi X, Yang J. Selection, identification and evaluation of optimal reference genes in Chinese sturgeon (Acipenser sinensis) under polypropylene microplastics stress. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 920:170894. [PMID: 38367736 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2023] [Revised: 02/04/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/19/2024]
Abstract
Polypropylene microplastics (PP-MPs) are emerging environmental contaminants that have the potential to cause adverse effects on aquatic organisms. Reverse transcriptase quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is a valuable tool for assessing the gene expression profiles under PP-MPs stress. To obtain an accurate gene expression profile of tissue inflammation and apoptosis that reflects the molecular mechanisms underlying the impact of PP-MPs on Chinese sturgeon, identifying reliable reference genes is crucial for RT-qPCR analysis. In this study, we constructed an experiment model of Chinese sturgeon exposed to PP-MPs, assessed the pathological injury, metabolic profile responses and oxidative stress in liver, evaluated the reliability of 8 reliable reference genes by 4 commonly used algorithms including GeNorm, NormFinder, BeatKeeper, Delta Ct, and then analyzed the performance of inflammatory response genes in liver, spleen and kidney with the best reference gene. HE staining revealed that the cytoplasm full small vacuoles and nucleus diameter increased were occurred in the liver cell of PP-MPs in treatment groups. Additionally, oxidative and biochemical parameters were significantly changes in the liver of treatment groups. For the reference genes in PP-MPs exposure experiments, this study screening the optimal reference genes including: EF1α and GAPDH for liver and spleen, and GAPDH and RPS18 for kidney. Besides, 2 inflammatory response genes (NLRP3, TNF-α) were chosen to assess the optimal reference genes using the least stable reference gene (TUB) as a control, verified the practicality of the select reference genes in different tissues. We also found that the low concentration of PP-MPs could induce the liver tissue damage and inflammatory response in Chinese sturgeon. Our study initially evaluated the impact of short-time exposure with PP-MPs in Chinese sturgeon and provided 3 sets of validated optimal reference genes in Chinese sturgeon exposure to PP-MPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xu Cheng
- Hubei Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Project for Conservation of Fishes, Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China; Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China
| | - Kan Xiao
- Hubei Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Project for Conservation of Fishes, Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China; Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China
| | - Wei Jiang
- Hubei Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Project for Conservation of Fishes, Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China; Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China
| | - Guangyuan Peng
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Pei Chen
- Hubei Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Project for Conservation of Fishes, Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China; Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China
| | - Tingting Shu
- Hubei Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Project for Conservation of Fishes, Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China; Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China
| | - Hongtao Huang
- Hubei Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Project for Conservation of Fishes, Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China; Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China
| | - Xuetao Shi
- Hubei Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Project for Conservation of Fishes, Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China; Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China
| | - Jing Yang
- Hubei Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Project for Conservation of Fishes, Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China; Chinese Sturgeon Research Institute, China Three Gorges Corporation, Yichang, Hubei 443100, China.
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Ruan R, Li Y, Yue H, Ye H, Jin J, Wu J, Du H, Li C. Transcriptome Analyses Reveal Expression Profiles of Morphologically Undifferentiated and Differentiated Gonads of Yangtze Sturgeon Acipenser dabryanus. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:2058. [PMID: 38003000 PMCID: PMC10671670 DOI: 10.3390/genes14112058] [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: 10/01/2023] [Revised: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Sturgeon is known as a primitive fish with the ZZ/ZW sex determination system and is highly prized for its valuable caviar. Exploring the molecular mechanisms underlying gonadal differentiation would contribute to broadening our knowledge on the genetic regulation of sex differentiation of fish, enabling improved artificial breeding and management of sturgeons. However, the mechanisms are still poorly understood in sturgeons. This study aimed to profile expression patterns between female and male gonads at morphologically undifferentiated and early differentiated stages and identify vital genes involved in gonadal sex differentiation of sturgeons. The sexes of Yangtze sturgeon (Acipenser dabryanus) juveniles were identified via the sex-specific DNA marker and histological observation. Transcriptome analyses were carried out on female and male gonads at 30, 80 and 180 days post-hatching. The results showed that there was a total of 17 overlapped DEGs in the comparison groups of between female and male gonads at the three developmental stages, in which there were three DEGs related to ovarian steroidogenesis, including hsd17b1, foxl2 and cyp19a1. The three DEGs were highly expressed in the female gonads, of which the expression levels were gradually increased with the number of days after hatching. No well-known testis-related genes were found in the overlapped DEGs. Additionally, the expression levels of hsd17b1 and cyp19a1 mRNA were decreased with the knockdown of foxl2 mRNA via siRNA. The results further suggested that foxl2 should play a crucial role in the ovarian differentiation of sturgeons. In conclusion, this study showed that more genes involved in ovarian development than testis development emerged with sexually dimorphic expression during early gonadal sex differentiation, and it provided a preliminary understanding of the molecular regulation on gonadal differentiation of sturgeons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Ruan
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, China; (R.R.); (Y.L.); (H.Y.); (H.Y.); (J.J.); (J.W.)
| | - Ying Li
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, China; (R.R.); (Y.L.); (H.Y.); (H.Y.); (J.J.); (J.W.)
| | - Huamei Yue
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, China; (R.R.); (Y.L.); (H.Y.); (H.Y.); (J.J.); (J.W.)
| | - Huan Ye
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, China; (R.R.); (Y.L.); (H.Y.); (H.Y.); (J.J.); (J.W.)
| | - Jiali Jin
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, China; (R.R.); (Y.L.); (H.Y.); (H.Y.); (J.J.); (J.W.)
| | - Jinping Wu
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, China; (R.R.); (Y.L.); (H.Y.); (H.Y.); (J.J.); (J.W.)
| | - Hao Du
- Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Germplasm Resources and Biotechnology, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, China
| | - Chuangju Li
- Key Laboratory of Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, China; (R.R.); (Y.L.); (H.Y.); (H.Y.); (J.J.); (J.W.)
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Vitrification of the ovarian tissue in sturgeons. Theriogenology 2023; 196:18-24. [PMID: 36375212 DOI: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2022.11.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2022] [Revised: 10/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The aim of this study was to test whether vitrification of sterlet Acipenser ruthenus and Russian sturgeon Acipenser gueldenstaedtii ovarian tissue through needle-immersed vitrification (NIV) is an efficient strategy for the preservation of oogonia (OOG) in order to supplement the current conservation efforts for these endangered fish species. Histological analyses of the gonads displayed that the ovaries of both species were immature and contained predominantly OOG and primary oocytes. The germline origin of these cells was verified by localization of the vasa protein through immunocytochemistry. NIV protocol was optimized by testing different equilibration (ES) and vitrification solutions (VS) containing various concentrations of dimethyl sulfoxide (Me2SO), propylene glycol (PG) or methanol (MeOH). In sterlet, the highest average viability (55.7 ± 11.5%) was obtained by using a combination of 1.5 M PG and 1.5 M Me2SO in the ES, and 1.5 M MeOH and 5.5 M Me2SO in the VS. In Russian sturgeon, the highest average viability (49.4 ± 17.1%) was obtained by using a combination of 1.5 M MeOH and 1.5 M Me2SO in the ES, and 3 M PG and 3 M Me2SO in the VS. To test whether vitrified/warmed OOG are functional, we have conducted an intra-specific transplantation assay to verify whether transplanted sterlet OOG will colonize the gonads of recipient fish. Fluorescently labelled cells were detected within recipient gonads at 2 and 3 months post-fertilization (mpf). Colonization rates of vitrified/warmed OOG (70% at 2 mpf and 61% at 3 mpf) were similar to those of fresh OOG (80% at 2 mpf and 70% at 3 mpf). This study has demonstrated that vitrification of ovarian tissue is an effective method for the preservation of OOG, and that the vitrified/warmed cells are functional and are able to colonize recipient gonads after transplantation similarly to the fresh cells. Since the vitrification procedure displayed in this study is simple and does not require complex and expensive laboratory equipment, it can be readily applied in field conditions, and therefore it can be invaluable for the conservation efforts of the critically endangered sturgeon species. However, care needs to be taken that despite the research conducted so far, donor-derived progeny was not yet obtained in sturgeons.
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