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Lebenzon JE, Toxopeus J. Knock down to level up: Reframing RNAi for invertebrate ecophysiology. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2024; 297:111703. [PMID: 39029617 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2024.111703] [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: 02/21/2024] [Revised: 07/16/2024] [Accepted: 07/16/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024]
Abstract
Comparative ecophysiologists strive to understand physiological problems in non-model organisms, but molecular tools such as RNA interference (RNAi) are under-used in our field. Here, we provide a framework for invertebrate ecophysiologists to use RNAi to answer questions focused on physiological processes, rather than as a tool to investigate gene function. We specifically focus on non-model invertebrates, in which the use of other genetic tools (e.g., genetic knockout lines) is less likely. We argue that because RNAi elicits a temporary manipulation of gene expression, and resources to carry out RNAi are technically and financially accessible, it is an effective tool for invertebrate ecophysiologists. We cover the terminology and basic mechanisms of RNA interference as an accessible introduction for "non-molecular" physiologists, include a suggested workflow for identifying RNAi gene targets and validating biologically relevant gene knockdowns, and present a hypothesis-testing framework for using RNAi to answer common questions in the realm of invertebrate ecophysiology. This review encourages invertebrate ecophysiologists to use these tools and workflows to explore physiological processes and bridge genotypes to phenotypes in their animal(s) of interest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacqueline E Lebenzon
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 1N4.
| | - Jantina Toxopeus
- Department of Biology, St. Francis Xavier University, 2321 Notre Dame Ave, Antigonish, NS, Canada B2G 2W5
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Li X, Chen T, Wu X, Jiang X, Luo P, E Z, Hu C, Ren C. Apoptosis-Inducing Factor 2 (AIF-2) Mediates a Caspase-Independent Apoptotic Pathway in the Tropical Sea Cucumber ( Holothuria leucospilota). Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23063008. [PMID: 35328428 PMCID: PMC8954137 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23063008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2022] [Revised: 03/02/2022] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Apoptosis, also known as programmed cell death, is a biological process that is critical for embryonic development, organic differentiation, and tissue homeostasis of organisms. As an essential mitochondrial flavoprotein, the apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) can directly mediate the caspase-independent mitochondrial apoptotic pathway. In this study, we identified and characterized a novel AIF-2 (HlAIF-2) from the tropical sea cucumber Holothuria leucospilota. HlAIF-2 contains a conserved Pyr_redox_2 domain and a putative C-terminal nuclear localization sequence (NLS) but lacks an N-terminal mitochondrial localization sequence (MLS). In addition, both NADH- and FAD-binding domains for oxidoreductase function are conserved in HlAIF-2. HlAIF-2 mRNA was ubiquitously detected in all tissues and increased significantly during larval development. The transcript expression of HlAIF-2 was significantly upregulated after treatment with CdCl2, but not the pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) in primary coelomocytes. In HEK293T cells, HlAIF-2 protein was located in the cytoplasm and nucleus, and tended to transfer into the nucleus by CdCl2 incubation. Moreover, there was an overexpression of HlAIF-2-induced apoptosis in HEK293T cells. As a whole, this study provides the first evidence for heavy metal-induced apoptosis mediated by AIF-2 in sea cucumbers, and it may contribute to increasing the basic knowledge of the caspase-independent apoptotic pathway in ancient echinoderm species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaomin Li
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-Resources and Ecology (LMB), South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510301, China; (X.L.); (T.C.); (X.J.); (P.L.); (Z.E.); (C.H.)
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Ting Chen
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-Resources and Ecology (LMB), South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510301, China; (X.L.); (T.C.); (X.J.); (P.L.); (Z.E.); (C.H.)
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
| | - Xiaofen Wu
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell, University of Paris-Saclay, 91198 Paris, France;
| | - Xiao Jiang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-Resources and Ecology (LMB), South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510301, China; (X.L.); (T.C.); (X.J.); (P.L.); (Z.E.); (C.H.)
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
| | - Peng Luo
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-Resources and Ecology (LMB), South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510301, China; (X.L.); (T.C.); (X.J.); (P.L.); (Z.E.); (C.H.)
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
| | - Zixuan E
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-Resources and Ecology (LMB), South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510301, China; (X.L.); (T.C.); (X.J.); (P.L.); (Z.E.); (C.H.)
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Chaoqun Hu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-Resources and Ecology (LMB), South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510301, China; (X.L.); (T.C.); (X.J.); (P.L.); (Z.E.); (C.H.)
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
| | - Chunhua Ren
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-Resources and Ecology (LMB), South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510301, China; (X.L.); (T.C.); (X.J.); (P.L.); (Z.E.); (C.H.)
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
- Correspondence:
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Guo M, Li C. Current progress on identification of virus pathogens and the antiviral effectors in echinoderms. DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPARATIVE IMMUNOLOGY 2021; 116:103912. [PMID: 33129884 DOI: 10.1016/j.dci.2020.103912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2020] [Revised: 10/25/2020] [Accepted: 10/25/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Echinoderms are important marine organisms that live in a wide range from the intertidal zone to the abyssal zone. Members of this phylum are prone to dramatic population fluctuations that may trigger dramatic shifts in ecosystem structure. Despite the extremely complex nature of the marine environment, the immune systems of echinoderms induce a complex innate immune response to prokaryotic and eukaryotic pathogens. Previous studies showed that many echinoderm disease outbreaks were associated with specific bacteria, whereas recent scientific investigations using newly developed technologies revealed the amazing diversity of viruses in seawater. Viruses are potential pathogens of several infectious diseases of marine echinoderms. We reviewed the discovery of viruses in echinoderms and discussed the relationship between viruses and diseases for the first time. We further summarized the research progress of the potential immune-related genes and signal pathways induced by viruses and poly (I:C). Additionally, numbers of studies showed that active substances extracted from echinoderms, or the compounds synthesized from these substances, have significant antihuman virus ability. This result suggests that the active substances derived from echinoderms provide potential antiviral protection for the organism, which may provide future research directions for the antiviral immunity of echinoderms. Thus, this review also collected information on the antiviral activities of biologically active substances from echinoderms, which may pave the way for new trends in antiviral immunity for echinoderms and antiviral drugs in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming Guo
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Ningbo University, PR China
| | - Chenghua Li
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Ningbo University, PR China; Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao, 266071, PR China.
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Double-Stranded RNA Binding Proteins in Serum Contribute to Systemic RNAi Across Phyla-Towards Finding the Missing Link in Achelata. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21186967. [PMID: 32971953 PMCID: PMC7554946 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21186967] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2020] [Revised: 09/11/2020] [Accepted: 09/17/2020] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
RNA interference (RNAi) has become a widely utilized method for studying gene function, yet despite this many of the mechanisms surrounding RNAi remain elusive. The core RNAi machinery is relatively well understood, however many of the systemic mechanisms, particularly double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) transport, are not. Here, we demonstrate that dsRNA binding proteins in the serum contribute to systemic RNAi and may be the limiting factor in RNAi capacity for species such as spiny lobsters, where gene silencing is not functional. Incubating sera from a variety of species across phyla with dsRNA led to a gel mobility shift in species in which systemic RNAi has been observed, with this response being absent in species in which systemic RNAi has never been observed. Proteomic analysis suggested lipoproteins may be responsible for this phenomenon and may transport dsRNA to spread the RNAi signal systemically. Following this, we identified the same gel shift in the slipper lobster Thenus australiensis and subsequently silenced the insulin androgenic gland hormone, marking the first time RNAi has been performed in any lobster species. These results pave the way for inducing RNAi in spiny lobsters and for a better understanding of the mechanisms of systemic RNAi in Crustacea, as well as across phyla.
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