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Valdivieso A, Anastasiadi D, Ribas L, Piferrer F. Development of epigenetic biomarkers for the identification of sex and thermal stress in fish using DNA methylation analysis and machine learning procedures. Mol Ecol Resour 2023; 23:453-470. [PMID: 36305237 PMCID: PMC10098837 DOI: 10.1111/1755-0998.13725] [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: 07/31/2021] [Revised: 09/28/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
The sex ratio is a key ecological demographic parameter crucial for population viability. However, the epigenetic mechanisms operating during gonadal development regulating gene expression and the sex ratio remain poorly understood. Moreover, there is interest in the development of epigenetic markers associated with a particular phenotype or as sentinels of environmental effects. Here, we profiled DNA methylation and gene expression of 10 key genes related to sex development and stress, including steroidogenic enzymes, and growth and transcription factors. We provide novel information on the sex-related differences and on the influence of elevated temperature on these genes in zebrafish, a species with mixed genetic and environmental influences on sex ratios. We identified both positive (e.g., amh, cyp11c and hsd11b2) and negative (e.g., cyp11a1 and dmrt1) correlations in unexposed males, and negative correlation (amh) in exposed females between DNA methylation and gene expression levels. Further, we combined DNA methylation analysis with machine learning procedures and found a series of informative CpGs capable not only of correctly identifying sex (based on cyp19a1a DNA methylation levels) but also of identifying whether males and females had been exposed to abnormally elevated temperature when young (based on amh and foxl2a DNA methylation levels, respectively). This was achieved in the absence of conspicuous morphological alterations of the gonads. These DNA methylation-based epigenetic biomarkers represent molecular resources that can correctly recapitulate past thermal history and pave the way for similar findings in other species to assess potential ecological effects of environmental disturbances in the context of climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Valdivieso
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain.,IHPE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, IFREMER, Univ Perpignan Via Domitia, Montpellier, France
| | - Dafni Anastasiadi
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain.,The New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research Limited, Nelson, New Zealand
| | - Laia Ribas
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Francesc Piferrer
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain
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2
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Valdivieso A, Wilson CA, Amores A, da Silva Rodrigues M, Nóbrega RH, Ribas L, Postlethwait JH, Piferrer F. Environmentally-induced sex reversal in fish with chromosomal vs. polygenic sex determination. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2022; 213:113549. [PMID: 35618011 PMCID: PMC9620983 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2022.113549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2022] [Revised: 05/18/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Sex ratio depends on sex determination mechanisms and is a key demographic parameter determining population viability and resilience to natural and anthropogenic stressors. There is increasing evidence that the environment can alter sex ratio even in genetically sex-determined species (GSD), as elevated temperature can cause female-to-male sex reversal (neomales). Alarmingly, neomales are being discovered in natural populations of several fish, amphibian and reptile species worldwide. Understanding the basis of neomale development is important for conservation biology. Among GSD species, it is unknown whether those with chromosomal sex determination (CSD), the most common system, will better resist the influence of high temperature than those with polygenic sex determination (PSD). Here, we compared the effects of elevated temperature in two wild zebrafish strains, Nadia (NA) and Ekkwill (EKW), which have CSD with a ZZ/ZW system, against the AB laboratory strain, which has PSD. First, we uncovered novel sex genotypes and the results showed that, at control temperature, the masculinization rate roughly doubled with the addition of each Z chromosome, while some ZW and WW fish of the wild strains became neomales. Surprisingly, we found that at elevated temperatures WW fish were just as likely as ZW fish to become neomales and that all strains were equally susceptible to masculinization. These results demonstrate that the Z chromosome is not essential for male development and that the dose of W buffers masculinization at the control temperature but not at elevated temperature. Furthermore, at the elevated temperature the testes of neomales, but not of normal males, contained more spermatozoa than at the control temperature. Our results show in an unprecedented way that, in a global warming scenario, CSD species may not necessarily be better protected against the masculinizing effect of elevated temperature than PSD species, and reveal genotype-by-temperature interactions in male sex determination and spermatogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Valdivieso
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Angel Amores
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Maira da Silva Rodrigues
- Reproductive and Molecular Biology Group, Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Rafael Henrique Nóbrega
- Reproductive and Molecular Biology Group, Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Laia Ribas
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Francesc Piferrer
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Barcelona, Spain.
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3
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Hosseini S, Trakooljul N, Hirschfeld M, Wimmers K, Simianer H, Tetens J, Sharifi AR, Brenig B. Epigenetic Regulation of Phenotypic Sexual Plasticity Inducing Skewed Sex Ratio in Zebrafish. Front Cell Dev Biol 2022; 10:880779. [PMID: 35912111 PMCID: PMC9334531 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2022.880779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The plasticity of sexual phenotype in response to environmental conditions results in biased sex ratios, and their variation has an effect on population dynamics. Epigenetic modifications can modulate sex ratio variation in species, where sex is determined by genetic and environmental factors. However, the role of epigenetic mechanisms underlying skewed sex ratios is far from being clear and is still an object of debate in evolutionary developmental biology. In this study, we used zebrafish as a model animal to investigate the effect of DNA methylation on sex ratio variation in sex-biased families in response to environmental temperature. Two sex-biased families with a significant difference in sex ratio were selected for genome-wide DNA methylation analysis using reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS). The results showed significant genome-wide methylation differences between male-biased and female-biased families, with a greater number of methylated CpG sites in testes than ovaries. Likewise, pronounced differences between testes and ovaries were identified within both families, where the male-biased family exhibited a higher number of methylated sites than the female-biased family. The effect of temperature showed more methylated positions in the high incubation temperature than the control temperature. We found differential methylation of many reproduction-related genes (e.g., sox9a, nr5a2, lhx8a, gata4) and genes involved in epigenetic mechanisms (e.g., dnmt3bb.1, dimt1l, hdac11, h1m) in both families. We conclude that epigenetic modifications can influence the sex ratio variation in zebrafish families and may generate skewed sex ratios, which could have a negative consequence for population fitness in species with genotype-environment interaction sex-determining system under rapid environmental changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahrbanou Hosseini
- Molecular Biology of Livestock and Molecular Diagnostics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Functional Breeding Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- *Correspondence: Shahrbanou Hosseini, ; Nares Trakooljul,
| | - Nares Trakooljul
- Research Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), Institute of Genome Biology, Genomics Unit, Dummerstorf, Germany
- *Correspondence: Shahrbanou Hosseini, ; Nares Trakooljul,
| | - Marc Hirschfeld
- Molecular Biology of Livestock and Molecular Diagnostics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Klaus Wimmers
- Research Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), Institute of Genome Biology, Genomics Unit, Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Henner Simianer
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Animal Breeding and Genetics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Jens Tetens
- Functional Breeding Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Ahmad Reza Sharifi
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Animal Breeding and Genetics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Bertram Brenig
- Molecular Biology of Livestock and Molecular Diagnostics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
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4
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Wang C, Chen X, Dai Y, Zhang Y, Sun Y, Cui X. Comparative transcriptome analysis of heat-induced domesticated zebrafish during gonadal differentiation. BMC Genom Data 2022; 23:39. [PMID: 35641933 PMCID: PMC9158171 DOI: 10.1186/s12863-022-01058-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2021] [Accepted: 05/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The influence of environmental factors, especially temperature, on sex ratio is of great significance to elucidate the mechanism of sex determination. However, the molecular mechanisms by which temperature affects sex determination remains unclear, although a few candidate genes have been found to play a role in the process. In this study, we conducted transcriptome analysis of the effects induced by high temperature on zebrafish during gonad differentiation period. RESULTS Totals of 1171, 1022 and 2921 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between high temperature and normal temperature were identified at 35, 45 and 60 days post-fertilization (dpf) respectively, revealing that heat shock proteins (HSPs) and DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs) were involved in the heat-exposed sex reversal. The Gene Ontology (GO) terms and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway that were enriched in individuals after heat treatment included Fanconi anemia (FA) pathway, cell cycle, oocyte meiosis and homologous recombination. CONCLUSIONS Our study provides the results of comparative transcriptome analyses between high temperature and normal temperature, and reveals that the molecular mechanism of heat-induced masculinization in zebrafish is strongly related to the expression of HSPs and DNMTs and FA pathway during gonad differentiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenchen Wang
- School of Life and Health Science, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, Hunan, China
| | - Xuhuai Chen
- School of Life and Health Science, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, Hunan, China
| | - Yu Dai
- School of Life and Health Science, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, Hunan, China
| | - Yifei Zhang
- School of Life and Health Science, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, Hunan, China.,Hunan Key Laboratory of Economic Crops Genetic Improvement and Integrated Utilization, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, Hunan, China
| | - Yuandong Sun
- School of Life and Health Science, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, Hunan, China.,Hunan Key Laboratory of Economic Crops Genetic Improvement and Integrated Utilization, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, Hunan, China
| | - Xiaojuan Cui
- School of Life and Health Science, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, Hunan, China. .,Hunan Key Laboratory of Economic Crops Genetic Improvement and Integrated Utilization, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, Hunan, China.
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5
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Feugere L, Scott VF, Rodriguez-Barucg Q, Beltran-Alvarez P, Wollenberg Valero KC. Thermal stress induces a positive phenotypic and molecular feedback loop in zebrafish embryos. J Therm Biol 2021; 102:103114. [PMID: 34863478 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2021.103114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2021] [Revised: 09/28/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Aquatic organisms must cope with both rising and rapidly changing temperatures. These thermal changes can affect numerous traits, from molecular to ecological scales. Biotic stressors are already known to induce the release of chemical cues which trigger behavioural responses in other individuals. In this study, we infer whether fluctuating temperature, as an abiotic stressor, may similarly induce stress-like responses in individuals not directly exposed to the stressor. To test this hypothesis, zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos were exposed for 24 h to fluctuating thermal stress, to medium in which another embryo was thermally stressed before ("stress medium"), and to a combination of these. Growth, behaviour, expression of molecular markers, and of whole-embryo cortisol were used to characterise the thermal stress response and its propagation between embryos. Both fluctuating high temperature and stress medium significantly accelerated development, by shifting stressed embryos from segmentation to pharyngula stages, and altered embryonic activity. Importantly, we found that the expression of sulfide:quinone oxidoreductase (SQOR), the antioxidant gene SOD1, and of interleukin-1β (IL-1β) were significantly altered by stress medium. This study illustrates the existence of positive thermal stress feedback loops in zebrafish embryos where heat stress can induce stress-like responses in conspecifics, but which might operate via different molecular pathways. If similar effects also occur under less severe heat stress regimes, this mechanism may be relevant in natural settings as well.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauric Feugere
- Department of Biological and Marine Sciences, University of Hull, Cottingham Road, Kingston Upon Hull, HU6 7RX, United Kingdom
| | - Victoria F Scott
- Department of Biological and Marine Sciences, University of Hull, Cottingham Road, Kingston Upon Hull, HU6 7RX, United Kingdom; Energy and Environment Institute, University of Hull, Cottingham Road, Kingston Upon Hull, HU6 7RX, United Kingdom
| | - Quentin Rodriguez-Barucg
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Hull, Cottingham Road, Kingston Upon Hull, HU6 7RX, United Kingdom
| | - Pedro Beltran-Alvarez
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Hull, Cottingham Road, Kingston Upon Hull, HU6 7RX, United Kingdom
| | - Katharina C Wollenberg Valero
- Department of Biological and Marine Sciences, University of Hull, Cottingham Road, Kingston Upon Hull, HU6 7RX, United Kingdom.
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6
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Urushibata H, Sasaki K, Takahashi E, Hanada T, Fujimoto T, Arai K, Yamaha E. Control of Developmental Speed in Zebrafish Embryos Using Different Incubation Temperatures. Zebrafish 2021; 18:316-325. [PMID: 34491109 DOI: 10.1089/zeb.2021.0022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The zebrafish is a valuable model organism that is widely used in studies of vertebrate development. In the laboratory, zebrafish embryonic development is normally carried out at 28.5°C. In this study, we sought to determine whether it was possible to modify the speed of embryonic development through the use of short- and long-term variations in incubation temperature. After incubation at 20°C-32°C, most early-stage embryos survived to the epiboly stage, whereas more than half of the embryos died at <20°C or >32°C. The rate of development differed between embryos incubated at the lowest (18°C) and highest (34°C) temperatures: a difference of 60 min was observed at the 2-cell stage and 290 min at the 1k-cell stage. When blastulae that had developed at 28°C were transferred to a temperature lower than 18°C for one or more hours, they developed normally after being returned to the original 28°C. Analyses using green fluorescent protein-buckyball mRNA and in situ hybridization against vasa mRNA showed that primordial germ cells increase under low-temperature culture; this response may be of use for studies involving heterochronic germ cell transplantation. Our study shows that embryonic developmental speed can be slowed, which will be of value for performing time-consuming, complicated, and delicate microsurgical operations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hirotaro Urushibata
- Laboratory of Aquaculture Genetics and Genomics, Faculty and Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate, Japan.,Nanae Freshwater Station, Field Science Center for Northern Biosphere, Hokkaido University, Nanae, Japan.,Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Oita University, Oita, Japan
| | - Kazuaki Sasaki
- Laboratory of Aquaculture Genetics and Genomics, Faculty and Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate, Japan
| | - Eisuke Takahashi
- Nanae Freshwater Station, Field Science Center for Northern Biosphere, Hokkaido University, Nanae, Japan
| | - Toshikatsu Hanada
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Oita University, Oita, Japan
| | - Takafumi Fujimoto
- Laboratory of Aquaculture Genetics and Genomics, Faculty and Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate, Japan
| | - Katsutoshi Arai
- Laboratory of Aquaculture Genetics and Genomics, Faculty and Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate, Japan
| | - Etsuro Yamaha
- Nanae Freshwater Station, Field Science Center for Northern Biosphere, Hokkaido University, Nanae, Japan
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7
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Hosseini S, Schmitt AO, Tetens J, Brenig B, Simianer H, Sharifi AR, Gültas M. In Silico Prediction of Transcription Factor Collaborations Underlying Phenotypic Sexual Dimorphism in Zebrafish ( Danio rerio). Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:873. [PMID: 34200177 PMCID: PMC8227731 DOI: 10.3390/genes12060873] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Revised: 06/02/2021] [Accepted: 06/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The transcriptional regulation of gene expression in higher organisms is essential for different cellular and biological processes. These processes are controlled by transcription factors and their combinatorial interplay, which are crucial for complex genetic programs and transcriptional machinery. The regulation of sex-biased gene expression plays a major role in phenotypic sexual dimorphism in many species, causing dimorphic gene expression patterns between two different sexes. The role of transcription factor (TF) in gene regulatory mechanisms so far has not been studied for sex determination and sex-associated colour patterning in zebrafish with respect to phenotypic sexual dimorphism. To address this open biological issue, we applied bioinformatics approaches for identifying the predicted TF pairs based on their binding sites for sex and colour genes in zebrafish. In this study, we identified 25 (e.g., STAT6-GATA4; JUN-GATA4; SOX9-JUN) and 14 (e.g., IRF-STAT6; SOX9-JUN; STAT6-GATA4) potentially cooperating TFs based on their binding patterns in promoter regions for sex determination and colour pattern genes in zebrafish, respectively. The comparison between identified TFs for sex and colour genes revealed several predicted TF pairs (e.g., STAT6-GATA4; JUN-SOX9) are common for both phenotypes, which may play a pivotal role in phenotypic sexual dimorphism in zebrafish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahrbanou Hosseini
- Molecular Biology of Livestock and Molecular Diagnostics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, 37077 Göttingen, Germany;
- Functional Breeding Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, 37077 Göttingen, Germany;
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, University of Göttingen, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany; (A.O.S.); (H.S.); (A.R.S.); (M.G.)
| | - Armin Otto Schmitt
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany; (A.O.S.); (H.S.); (A.R.S.); (M.G.)
- Breeding Informatics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Jens Tetens
- Functional Breeding Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, 37077 Göttingen, Germany;
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany; (A.O.S.); (H.S.); (A.R.S.); (M.G.)
| | - Bertram Brenig
- Molecular Biology of Livestock and Molecular Diagnostics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, 37077 Göttingen, Germany;
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, University of Göttingen, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany; (A.O.S.); (H.S.); (A.R.S.); (M.G.)
| | - Henner Simianer
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany; (A.O.S.); (H.S.); (A.R.S.); (M.G.)
- Animal Breeding and Genetics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Ahmad Reza Sharifi
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany; (A.O.S.); (H.S.); (A.R.S.); (M.G.)
- Animal Breeding and Genetics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Mehmet Gültas
- Center for Integrated Breeding Research (CiBreed), University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany; (A.O.S.); (H.S.); (A.R.S.); (M.G.)
- Breeding Informatics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
- Faculty of Agriculture, South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences, 59494 Soest, Germany
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8
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Rödel CJ, Abdelilah-Seyfried S. A zebrafish toolbox for biomechanical signaling in cardiovascular development and disease. Curr Opin Hematol 2021; 28:198-207. [PMID: 33714969 DOI: 10.1097/moh.0000000000000648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW The zebrafish embryo has emerged as a powerful model organism to investigate the mechanisms by which biophysical forces regulate vascular and cardiac cell biology during development and disease. A versatile arsenal of methods and tools is available to manipulate and analyze biomechanical signaling. This review aims to provide an overview of the experimental strategies and tools that have been utilized to study biomechanical signaling in cardiovascular developmental processes and different vascular disease models in the zebrafish embryo. Within the scope of this review, we focus on work published during the last two years. RECENT FINDINGS Genetic and pharmacological tools for the manipulation of cardiac function allow alterations of hemodynamic flow patterns in the zebrafish embryo and various types of transgenic lines are available to report endothelial cell responses to biophysical forces. These tools have not only revealed the impact of biophysical forces on cardiovascular development but also helped to establish more accurate models for cardiovascular diseases including cerebral cavernous malformations, hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasias, arteriovenous malformations, and lymphangiopathies. SUMMARY The zebrafish embryo is a valuable vertebrate model in which in-vivo manipulations of biophysical forces due to cardiac contractility and blood flow can be performed. These analyses give important insights into biomechanical signaling pathways that control endothelial and endocardial cell behaviors. The technical advances using this vertebrate model will advance our understanding of the impact of biophysical forces in cardiovascular pathologies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Salim Abdelilah-Seyfried
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, Potsdam University, Potsdam, Germany
- Institute of Molecular Biology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
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9
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Romero-Reyes J, Molina-Hernández A, Díaz NF, Camacho-Arroyo I. Role of serotonin in vertebrate embryo development. Reprod Biol 2020; 21:100475. [PMID: 33370653 DOI: 10.1016/j.repbio.2020.100475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Revised: 12/08/2020] [Accepted: 12/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Since its discovery in 1937, serotonin (5-HT) has become one of the most studied biogenic amines due to its predominant role in regulating several physiological processes such as mood, sleep, and food intake. This amine and the main components of the serotoninergic system are in almost all cells of the body. The presence of 5-HT and the serotoninergic system has been observed in oocytes and in different embryo development stages of fish, amphibians, birds, and mammals. In several classes of vertebrates, the change in the concentration of 5-HT or the alteration of the serotoninergic system, interfere with early embryo development. These data suggest that 5-HT participates in embryo development of vertebrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Romero-Reyes
- Unidad de Investigación en Reproducción Humana, Instituto Nacional de Perinatología-Facultad de Química, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Mexico City, Mexico
| | | | - Néstor Fabián Díaz
- Departamento de Fisiología y Desarrollo Celular, Instituto Nacional de Perinatología, Mexico.
| | - Ignacio Camacho-Arroyo
- Unidad de Investigación en Reproducción Humana, Instituto Nacional de Perinatología-Facultad de Química, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Mexico City, Mexico.
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10
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Cabezas-Sáinz P, Pensado-López A, Sáinz B, Sánchez L. Modeling Cancer Using Zebrafish Xenografts: Drawbacks for Mimicking the Human Microenvironment. Cells 2020; 9:E1978. [PMID: 32867288 PMCID: PMC7564051 DOI: 10.3390/cells9091978] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2020] [Revised: 08/07/2020] [Accepted: 08/19/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The first steps towards establishing xenografts in zebrafish embryos were performed by Lee et al., 2005 and Haldi et al., 2006, paving the way for studying human cancers using this animal species. Since then, the xenograft technique has been improved in different ways, ranging from optimizing the best temperature for xenografted embryo incubation, testing different sites for injection of human tumor cells, and even developing tools to study how the host interacts with the injected cells. Nonetheless, a standard protocol for performing xenografts has not been adopted across laboratories, and further research on the temperature, microenvironment of the tumor or the cell-host interactions inside of the embryo during xenografting is still needed. As a consequence, current non-uniform conditions could be affecting experimental results in terms of cell proliferation, invasion, or metastasis; or even overestimating the effects of some chemotherapeutic drugs on xenografted cells. In this review, we highlight and raise awareness regarding the different aspects of xenografting that need to be improved in order to mimic, in a more efficient way, the human tumor microenvironment, resulting in more robust and accurate in vivo results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Cabezas-Sáinz
- Department of Zoology, Genetics and Physical Anthropology, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Campus de Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain; (P.C.-S.); (A.P.-L.)
| | - Alba Pensado-López
- Department of Zoology, Genetics and Physical Anthropology, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Campus de Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain; (P.C.-S.); (A.P.-L.)
- Genomic Medicine Group, Center for Research in Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CiMUS), Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 15706 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Bruno Sáinz
- Departamento de Bioquímica, Facultad de Medicina, Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas “Alberto Sols” CSIC-UAM, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Arzobispo Morcillo 4, 28029 Madrid, Spain;
- Cancer Stem Cell and Fibroinflammatory Microenvironment Group, Chronic Diseases and Cancer Area 3-Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), 28034 Madrid, Spain
| | - Laura Sánchez
- Department of Zoology, Genetics and Physical Anthropology, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Campus de Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain; (P.C.-S.); (A.P.-L.)
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11
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Hosseini S, Simianer H, Tetens J, Brenig B, Herzog S, Sharifi AR. Efficient phenotypic sex classification of zebrafish using machine learning methods. Ecol Evol 2019; 9:13332-13343. [PMID: 31871648 PMCID: PMC6912926 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2019] [Revised: 09/09/2019] [Accepted: 09/17/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Sex determination in zebrafish by manual approaches according to current guidelines relies on human observation. These guidelines for sex recognition have proven to be subjective and highly labor-intensive. To address this problem, we present a methodology to automatically classify the phenotypic sex using two machine learning methods: Deep Convolutional Neural Networks (DCNNs) based on the whole fish appearance and Support Vector Machine (SVM) based on caudal fin coloration. Machine learning techniques in sex classification provide potential efficiency with the advantage of automatization and robustness in the prediction process. Furthermore, since developmental plasticity can be influenced by environmental conditions, we have investigated the impact of elevated water temperature during embryogenesis on sex and sex-related differences in color intensity of adult zebrafish. The estimated color intensity based on SVM was then applied to detect the association between coloration and body weight and length. Phenotypic sex classifications using machine learning methods resulted in a high degree of association with the real sex in nontreated animals. In temperature-induced animals, DCNNs reached a performance of 100%, whereas 20% of males were misclassified using SVM due to a lower color intensity. Furthermore, a positive association between color intensity and body weight and length was observed in males. Our study demonstrates that high ambient temperature leads to a lower color intensity in male animals and a positive association of male caudal fin coloration with body weight and length, which appears to play a significant role in sexual attraction. The software developed for sex classification in this study is readily applicable to other species with sex-linked visible phenotypic differences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahrbanou Hosseini
- Department of Animal SciencesUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
- Center for Integrated Breeding ResearchUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
| | - Henner Simianer
- Department of Animal SciencesUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
- Center for Integrated Breeding ResearchUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
| | - Jens Tetens
- Department of Animal SciencesUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
- Center for Integrated Breeding ResearchUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
| | - Bertram Brenig
- Department of Animal SciencesUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
- Center for Integrated Breeding ResearchUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
- Institute of Veterinary MedicineUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
| | - Sebastian Herzog
- Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self‐OrganizationGoettingenGermany
- Department for Computational Neuroscience3rd Physics Institute‐BiophysicsUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
| | - Ahmad Reza Sharifi
- Department of Animal SciencesUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
- Center for Integrated Breeding ResearchUniversity of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
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12
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Lafuente E, Beldade P. Genomics of Developmental Plasticity in Animals. Front Genet 2019; 10:720. [PMID: 31481970 PMCID: PMC6709652 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2019.00720] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2019] [Accepted: 07/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Developmental plasticity refers to the property by which the same genotype produces distinct phenotypes depending on the environmental conditions under which development takes place. By allowing organisms to produce phenotypes adjusted to the conditions that adults will experience, developmental plasticity can provide the means to cope with environmental heterogeneity. Developmental plasticity can be adaptive and its evolution can be shaped by natural selection. It has also been suggested that developmental plasticity can facilitate adaptation and promote diversification. Here, we summarize current knowledge on the evolution of plasticity and on the impact of plasticity on adaptive evolution, and we identify recent advances and important open questions about the genomics of developmental plasticity in animals. We give special attention to studies using transcriptomics to identify genes whose expression changes across developmental environments and studies using genetic mapping to identify loci that contribute to variation in plasticity and can fuel its evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Patrícia Beldade
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Oeiras, Portugal
- CNRS-UMR5174, Université Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Changes, Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal
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13
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Hosseini S, Ha NT, Simianer H, Falker-Gieske C, Brenig B, Franke A, Hörstgen-Schwark G, Tetens J, Herzog S, Sharifi AR. Genetic mechanism underlying sexual plasticity and its association with colour patterning in zebrafish (Danio rerio). BMC Genomics 2019; 20:341. [PMID: 31060508 PMCID: PMC6503382 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-019-5722-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2018] [Accepted: 04/22/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Elevated water temperature, as is expected through climate change, leads to masculinization in fish species with sexual plasticity, resulting in changes in population dynamics. These changes are one important ecological consequence, contributing to the risk of extinction in small and inbred fish populations under natural conditions, due to male-biased sex ratio. Here we investigated the effect of elevated water temperature during embryogenesis on sex ratio and sex-biased gene expression profiles between two different tissues, namely gonad and caudal fin of adult zebrafish males and females, to gain new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying sex determination (SD) and colour patterning related to sexual attractiveness. RESULTS Our study demonstrated sex ratio imbalances with 25.5% more males under high-temperature condition, resulting from gonadal masculinization. The result of transcriptome analysis showed a significantly upregulated expression of male SD genes (e.g. dmrt1, amh, cyp11c1 and sept8b) and downregulation of female SD genes (e.g. zp2.1, vtg1, cyp19a1a and bmp15) in male gonads compared to female gonads. Contrary to expectations, we found highly differential expression of colour pattern (CP) genes in the gonads, suggesting the 'neofunctionalisation' of those genes in the zebrafish reproduction system. However, in the caudal fin, no differential expression of CP genes was identified, suggesting the observed differences in colouration between males and females in adult fish may be due to post-transcriptional regulation of key enzymes involved in pigment synthesis and distribution. CONCLUSIONS Our study demonstrates male-biased sex ratio under high temperature condition and support a polygenic SD (PSD) system in laboratory zebrafish. We identify a subset of pathways (tight junction, gap junction and apoptosis), enriched for SD and CP genes, which appear to be co-regulated in the same pathway, providing evidence for involvement of those genes in the regulation of phenotypic sexual dimorphism in zebrafish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahrbanou Hosseini
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany. .,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.
| | - Ngoc-Thuy Ha
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Henner Simianer
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Clemens Falker-Gieske
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Bertram Brenig
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Institute of Veterinary Medicine, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Andre Franke
- Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology, Christian-Albrechts-University, Kiel, Germany
| | | | - Jens Tetens
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Sebastian Herzog
- Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, Goettingen, Germany.,Department for Computational Neuroscience, 3rd Physics Institute-Biophysics, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Ahmad Reza Sharifi
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
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14
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Hosseini S, Brenig B, Tetens J, Sharifi AR. Phenotypic plasticity induced using high ambient temperature during embryogenesis in domesticated zebrafish, Danio rerio. Reprod Domest Anim 2018; 54:435-444. [PMID: 30472784 PMCID: PMC7379563 DOI: 10.1111/rda.13382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2018] [Accepted: 11/01/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Ambient temperature during early stages of life has a substantial effect on physiological processes, eliciting phenotypic plasticity during zebrafish developmental stages. Zebrafish are known to possess a noteworthy ability to modify their phenotype in dependence of environmental factors. However, there is a poor understanding of the effects of temperature during embryogenesis, which influences the biological functions such as survival ability and masculinization in later developmental stages. Since the middle embryonic phase (pharyngula period) is genetically the most conserved stage in embryogenesis, it is very susceptible to embryonic lethality in developmental processes of vertebrates. Here, we tested the effect of transient perturbations (heat shock) during early development (5–24 hr post‐fertilization; hpf) at 35°C compared to control group at 28°C, on survival ability of zebrafish to study the embryonic and post‐embryonic mortality. We studied the variation of heat‐induced masculinization among and across the families in response to high temperature. Furthermore, morphometric traits of adult zebrafish at different developmental time points were measured in order to estimate the temperature × sex interaction effect. We found the highest embryonic mortality around the gastrula and segmentation periods in both experimental groups, with significantly lower survival ability in the temperature‐treated group (73.30% ± 0.58% vs. 70.19% ± 0.57%, respectively). A higher hatching success was observed in the control group (71.08% ± 0.61%) compared to the heat‐induced group (67.95% ± 0.60%). A distinct reduction in survival ability was also observed in both experimental groups during the first two weeks after hatching, followed by a reduced level of changes thereafter. We found sex ratio imbalances across all families, with 25.2% more males under temperature treatment. Our study on growth performance has shown a positive effect of increased temperature on growth plasticity, with a greater impact on female fish in response to high ambient temperature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahrbanou Hosseini
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Bertram Brenig
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Institute of Veterinary Medicine, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Jens Tetens
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Ahmad Reza Sharifi
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Center for Integrated Breeding Research, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
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