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Boštjančić LL, Dragičević P, Bonassin L, Francesconi C, Tarandek A, Schardt L, Rutz C, Hudina S, Schwenk K, Lecompte O, Theissinger K. Expression of C/EBP and Kr-h1 transcription factors under immune stimulation in the noble crayfish. Gene 2024; 929:148813. [PMID: 39094714 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2024.148813] [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: 04/09/2024] [Revised: 07/08/2024] [Accepted: 07/30/2024] [Indexed: 08/04/2024]
Abstract
Transcription factors (TFs) have an important role in the regulation of the gene expression network. The role of TFs in the immune response of freshwater crayfish is poorly understood, but leveraging the regulatory mechanisms of immune response could augment the resistance against the invasive oomycete pathogen, Aphanomyces astaci. Previous studies indicated that the TFs CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein (C/EBP) and putative Krüppel homolog-1 protein (Kr-h1) might play a role in immune and stress response of the noble crayfish (Astacus astacus). Here, we aimed to further characterise these two gene products to gain a better understanding of their evolutionary origin, domain organisation and expression patterns across different crayfish tissues. Furthermore, we conducted an immune stimulation experiment to observe the potential changes in the gene expression of C/EBP and Kr-h1 under immune challenge in different crayfish tissues. Our results showed that both C/EBP and Kr-h1 are closely related to other C/EBPs and Kr-h1s in Malacostraca. Gene expression analysis revealed that both TFs are present in all analysed tissues, with higher expression of C/EBP in the gills and Kr-h1 in the abdominal muscle. Immune stimulation with laminarin (mimicking β-1-3-glucan in the oomycete cell wall) showed an activation of the crayfish immune system, with an overall increase in the total haemocyte count (THC) compared to untreated control and crayfish buffered saline (CBS) treatment. On the gene expression level, an up-regulation of the C/EBP gene was detected in the laminarin treated group in hepatopancreas and heart, while no changes were observed for the Kr-h1 gene. Our results indicate an early change in C/EBP expression in multiple tissues during immune stimulation and suggest its involvement in the immune response of the noble crayfish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ljudevit Luka Boštjančić
- Institute of Insect Biotechnology, Justus-Liebig University, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26, 35392 Gießen, Germany; LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics (LOEWE-TBG), Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany; Department of Computer Science, ICube, UMR 7357, University of Strasbourg, CNRS, Centre de Recherche en Biomédecine de Strasbourg, Rue Eugène Boeckel 1, 67000 Strasbourg, France; iES - Institute for Environmental Sciences, RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau, Germany.
| | - Paula Dragičević
- Depatment of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Horvatovac 102a, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Lena Bonassin
- LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics (LOEWE-TBG), Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany; Department of Computer Science, ICube, UMR 7357, University of Strasbourg, CNRS, Centre de Recherche en Biomédecine de Strasbourg, Rue Eugène Boeckel 1, 67000 Strasbourg, France; iES - Institute for Environmental Sciences, RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau, Germany
| | - Caterina Francesconi
- LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics (LOEWE-TBG), Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany; iES - Institute for Environmental Sciences, RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau, Germany
| | - Anita Tarandek
- Depatment of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Horvatovac 102a, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Leonie Schardt
- LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics (LOEWE-TBG), Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Christelle Rutz
- Department of Computer Science, ICube, UMR 7357, University of Strasbourg, CNRS, Centre de Recherche en Biomédecine de Strasbourg, Rue Eugène Boeckel 1, 67000 Strasbourg, France
| | - Sandra Hudina
- Depatment of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Horvatovac 102a, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Klaus Schwenk
- iES - Institute for Environmental Sciences, RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau, Germany
| | - Odile Lecompte
- Department of Computer Science, ICube, UMR 7357, University of Strasbourg, CNRS, Centre de Recherche en Biomédecine de Strasbourg, Rue Eugène Boeckel 1, 67000 Strasbourg, France
| | - Kathrin Theissinger
- Institute of Insect Biotechnology, Justus-Liebig University, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26, 35392 Gießen, Germany; LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics (LOEWE-TBG), Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany
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Peterson CR, Scott CB, Ghaffari R, Dixon G, Matz MV. Mixed Patterns of Intergenerational DNA Methylation Inheritance in Acropora. Mol Biol Evol 2024; 41:msae008. [PMID: 38243377 PMCID: PMC11079325 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msae008] [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: 09/06/2023] [Revised: 12/29/2023] [Accepted: 01/04/2024] [Indexed: 01/21/2024] Open
Abstract
For sessile organisms at high risk from climate change, phenotypic plasticity can be critical to rapid acclimation. Epigenetic markers like DNA methylation are hypothesized as mediators of plasticity; methylation is associated with the regulation of gene expression, can change in response to ecological cues, and is a proposed basis for the inheritance of acquired traits. Within reef-building corals, gene-body methylation (gbM) can change in response to ecological stressors. If coral DNA methylation is transmissible across generations, this could potentially facilitate rapid acclimation to environmental change. We investigated methylation heritability in Acropora, a stony reef-building coral. Two Acropora millepora and two Acropora selago adults were crossed, producing eight offspring crosses (four hybrid, two of each species). We used whole-genome bisulfite sequencing to identify methylated loci and allele-specific alignments to quantify per-locus inheritance. If methylation is heritable, differential methylation (DM) between the parents should equal DM between paired offspring alleles at a given locus. We found a mixture of heritable and nonheritable loci, with heritable portions ranging from 44% to 90% among crosses. gBM was more heritable than intergenic methylation, and most loci had a consistent degree of heritability between crosses (i.e. the deviation between parental and offspring DM were of similar magnitude and direction). Our results provide evidence that coral methylation can be inherited but that heritability is heterogenous throughout the genome. Future investigations into this heterogeneity and its phenotypic implications will be important to understanding the potential capability of intergenerational environmental acclimation in reef building corals.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Carly B Scott
- Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Rashin Ghaffari
- Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Groves Dixon
- Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Mikhail V Matz
- Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
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Vogt G. Environmental Adaptation of Genetically Uniform Organisms with the Help of Epigenetic Mechanisms-An Insightful Perspective on Ecoepigenetics. EPIGENOMES 2022; 7:1. [PMID: 36648862 PMCID: PMC9844400 DOI: 10.3390/epigenomes7010001] [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: 11/21/2022] [Revised: 12/11/2022] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Organisms adapt to different environments by selection of the most suitable phenotypes from the standing genetic variation or by phenotypic plasticity, the ability of single genotypes to produce different phenotypes in different environments. Because of near genetic identity, asexually reproducing populations are particularly suitable for the investigation of the potential and molecular underpinning of the latter alternative in depth. Recent analyses on the whole-genome scale of differently adapted clonal animals and plants demonstrated that epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation, histone modifications and non-coding RNAs are among the molecular pathways supporting phenotypic plasticity and that epigenetic variation is used to stably adapt to different environments. Case studies revealed habitat-specific epigenetic fingerprints that were maintained over subsequent years pointing at the existence of epigenetic ecotypes. Environmentally induced epimutations and corresponding gene expression changes provide an ideal means for fast and directional adaptation to changing or new conditions, because they can synchronously alter phenotypes in many population members. Because microorganisms inclusive of human pathogens also exploit epigenetically mediated phenotypic variation for environmental adaptation, this phenomenon is considered a universal biological principle. The production of different phenotypes from the same DNA sequence in response to environmental cues by epigenetic mechanisms also provides a mechanistic explanation for the "general-purpose genotype hypothesis" and the "genetic paradox of invasions".
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Affiliation(s)
- Günter Vogt
- Faculty of Biosciences, University of Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 234, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
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