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Liegertová M, Malý J. Gastropod Mucus: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Biological Activities, Applications, and Strategic Priorities. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2023; 9:5567-5579. [PMID: 37751898 PMCID: PMC10566510 DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.3c01096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023]
Abstract
Terrestrial gastropod mucus exhibits multifunctional attributes, enabling diverse applications. This comprehensive review integrates insights across biomedicine, biotechnology, and intellectual property to elucidate the bioactivities, physicochemical properties, and ecological roles of snail and slug mucus. Following an overview of mucus functional roles in gastropods, promising applications are highlighted in wound healing, antimicrobials, biomaterials, and cosmetics, alongside key challenges. An analysis of global patent trends reveals surging innovation efforts to leverage gastropod mucus. Strategic priorities include bioprospecting natural diversity, optimizing stabilization systems, recombinant biosynthesis, and fostering collaboration to translate promising potentials sustainably into impactful technologies. Ultimately, harnessing the remarkable multifunctionality of gastropod mucus holds immense opportunities for transformative innovations in biomedicine, biotechnology, and beyond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michaela Liegertová
- Centre of Nanomaterials and Biotechnology,
Faculty of Science, Jan Evangelista Purkyně
University in Ústí nad Labem, Pasteurova 3632/15, Ústí nad Labem 400 96, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Malý
- Centre of Nanomaterials and Biotechnology,
Faculty of Science, Jan Evangelista Purkyně
University in Ústí nad Labem, Pasteurova 3632/15, Ústí nad Labem 400 96, Czech Republic
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2
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Unveiling Putative Functions of Mucus Proteins and Their Tryptic Peptides in Seven Gastropod Species Using Comparative Proteomics and Machine Learning-Based Bioinformatics Predictions. Molecules 2021; 26:molecules26113475. [PMID: 34200462 PMCID: PMC8201360 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26113475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Revised: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Gastropods are among the most diverse animals. Gastropod mucus contains several glycoproteins and peptides that vary by species and habitat. Some bioactive peptides from gastropod mucus were identified only in a few species. Therefore, using biochemical, mass spectrometric, and bioinformatics approaches, this study aimed to comprehensively identify putative bioactive peptides from the mucus proteomes of seven commonly found or commercially valuable gastropods. The mucus was collected in triplicate samples, and the proteins were separated by 1D-SDS-PAGE before tryptic digestion and peptide identification by nano LC-MS/MS. The mucus peptides were subsequently compared with R scripts. A total of 2818 different peptides constituting 1634 proteins from the mucus samples were identified, and 1218 of these peptides (43%) were core peptides found in the mucus of all examined species. Clustering and correspondence analyses of 1600 variable peptides showed unique mucous peptide patterns for each species. The high-throughput k-nearest neighbor and random forest-based prediction programs were developed with more than 95% averaged accuracy and could identify 11 functional categories of putative bioactive peptides and 268 peptides (9.5%) with at least five to seven bioactive properties. Antihypertensive, drug-delivering, and antiparasitic peptides were predominant. These peptides provide an understanding of gastropod mucus, and the putative bioactive peptides are expected to be experimentally validated for further medical, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic applications.
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3
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Pascual Alonso I, Rivera Méndez L, Valdés-Tresanco ME, Bounaadja L, Schmitt M, Arrebola Sánchez Y, Alvarez Lajonchere L, Charli JL, Florent I. Biochemical evidences for M1-, M17- and M18-like aminopeptidases in marine invertebrates from Cuban coastline. Z NATURFORSCH C 2020; 75:397-407. [PMID: 32609656 DOI: 10.1515/znc-2019-0169] [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: 09/25/2019] [Accepted: 06/01/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Metallo-aminopeptidases (mAPs) control many physiological processes. They are classified in different families according to structural similarities. Neutral mAPs catalyze the cleavage of neutral amino acids from the N-terminus of proteins or peptide substrates; they need one or two metallic cofactors in their active site. Information about marine invertebrate's neutral mAPs properties is scarce; available data are mainly derived from genomics and cDNA studies. The goal of this work was to characterize the biochemical properties of the neutral APs activities in eight Cuban marine invertebrate species from the Phyla Mollusca, Porifera, Echinodermata, and Cnidaria. Determination of substrate specificity, optimal pH and effects of inhibitors (1,10-phenanthroline, amastatin, and bestatin) and cobalt on activity led to the identification of distinct neutral AP-like activities, whose biochemical behaviors were similar to those of the M1 and M17 families of mAPs. Additionally, M18-like glutamyl AP activities were detected. Thus, marine invertebrates express biochemical activities likely belonging to various families of metallo-aminopeptidases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isel Pascual Alonso
- Center for Protein Studies, Faculty of Biology, University of Havana, Havana, Cuba
| | - Laura Rivera Méndez
- Center for Protein Studies, Faculty of Biology, University of Havana, Havana, Cuba
| | - Mario E Valdés-Tresanco
- Center for Protein Studies, Faculty of Biology, University of Havana, Havana, Cuba.,Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Lotfi Bounaadja
- Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM, UMR 7245), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Marjorie Schmitt
- Laboratoire d'Innovation Moléculaire et Applications - Université de Haute-Alsace, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, LIMA UMR7042, Mulhouse, France
| | | | - Luis Alvarez Lajonchere
- Museum of Natural History Felipe Poey, Faculty of Biology, University of Havana, Havana, Cuba
| | - Jean-Louis Charli
- Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Cuernavaca, Mexico
| | - Isabelle Florent
- Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM, UMR 7245), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Paris, France
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4
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Klein AH, Ballard KR, Storey KB, Motti CA, Zhao M, Cummins SF. Multi-omics investigations within the Phylum Mollusca, Class Gastropoda: from ecological application to breakthrough phylogenomic studies. Brief Funct Genomics 2020; 18:377-394. [PMID: 31609407 DOI: 10.1093/bfgp/elz017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2019] [Revised: 07/06/2019] [Accepted: 07/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Gastropods are the largest and most diverse class of mollusc and include species that are well studied within the areas of taxonomy, aquaculture, biomineralization, ecology, microbiome and health. Gastropod research has been expanding since the mid-2000s, largely due to large-scale data integration from next-generation sequencing and mass spectrometry in which transcripts, proteins and metabolites can be readily explored systematically. Correspondingly, the huge data added a great deal of complexity for data organization, visualization and interpretation. Here, we reviewed the recent advances involving gastropod omics ('gastropodomics') research from hundreds of publications and online genomics databases. By summarizing the current publicly available data, we present an insight for the design of useful data integrating tools and strategies for comparative omics studies in the future. Additionally, we discuss the future of omics applications in aquaculture, natural pharmaceutical biodiscovery and pest management, as well as to monitor the impact of environmental stressors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne H Klein
- Genecology Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore DC, Queensland 4558, Australia
| | - Kaylene R Ballard
- Genecology Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore DC, Queensland 4558, Australia
| | - Kenneth B Storey
- Institute of Biochemistry & Department of Biology, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1S 5B6
| | - Cherie A Motti
- Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), Cape Ferguson, Townsville Queensland 4810, Australia
| | - Min Zhao
- Genecology Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore DC, Queensland 4558, Australia
| | - Scott F Cummins
- Genecology Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore DC, Queensland 4558, Australia
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dos Santos-Pinto JRA, Esteves FG, Sialana FJ, Ferro M, Smidak R, Rares LC, Nussbaumer T, Rattei T, Bilban M, Bacci Júnior M, Palma MS, Lübec G. A proteotranscriptomic study of silk-producing glands from the orb-weaving spiders. Mol Omics 2019; 15:256-270. [DOI: 10.1039/c9mo00087a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
A proteotranscriptomic approach provides a biochemical basis for understanding the intricate spinning process and complex structural features of spider silk proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Franciele Grego Esteves
- Center of the Study of Social Insects
- Department of Biology
- Institute of Biosciences of Rio Claro
- São Paulo State University
- Rio Claro
| | | | - Milene Ferro
- Center of the Study of Social Insects
- Department of Biology
- Institute of Biosciences of Rio Claro
- São Paulo State University
- Rio Claro
| | - Roman Smidak
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry
- University of Vienna
- Austria
| | - Lucaciu Calin Rares
- Division of Computational System Biology
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem Science
- University of Vienna
- 1090 Vienna
- Austria
| | - Thomas Nussbaumer
- Division of Computational System Biology
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem Science
- University of Vienna
- 1090 Vienna
- Austria
| | - Thomas Rattei
- Division of Computational System Biology
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem Science
- University of Vienna
- 1090 Vienna
- Austria
| | - Martin Bilban
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Core Facility Genomics
- Medical University of Vienna
- Vienna
- Austria
| | - Maurício Bacci Júnior
- Center of the Study of Social Insects
- Department of Biology
- Institute of Biosciences of Rio Claro
- São Paulo State University
- Rio Claro
| | - Mario Sergio Palma
- Center of the Study of Social Insects
- Department of Biology
- Institute of Biosciences of Rio Claro
- São Paulo State University
- Rio Claro
| | - Gert Lübec
- Paracelsus Medical University
- A 5020 Salzburg
- Austria
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Tills O, Truebano M, Feldmeyer B, Pfenninger M, Morgenroth H, Schell T, Rundle SD. Transcriptomic responses to predator kairomones in embryos of the aquatic snail Radix balthica. Ecol Evol 2018; 8:11071-11082. [PMID: 30519426 PMCID: PMC6262742 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.4574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2018] [Revised: 09/04/2018] [Accepted: 09/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability of organisms to respond to predation threat by exhibiting induced defenses is well documented, but studies on the potential mechanistic basis for such responses are scarce. Here, we examine the transcriptomic response to predator kairomones of two functionally distinct developmental stages in embryos of the aquatic snail Radix balthica: E8-the stage at which a range-finding trial indicated that kairomone-induced accelerated growth and development first occurred; and E9-the stage at which embryos switched from ciliary- to crawling-driven locomotion. We tested whether expression profiles were influenced by kairomones and whether this influence varied between stages. We also identified potential candidate genes for investigating mechanisms underpinning induced responses. There were 6,741 differentially expressed transcripts between developmental stages, compared to just five in response to predator kairomones. However, on examination of functional enrichment in the transcripts responding to predator kairomones and adopting a less stringent significance threshold, 206 transcripts were identified relating to muscle function, growth, and development, with this response being greater at the later E9 stage. Furthermore, these transcripts included putative annotations for genes identified as responding to predator kairomones in other taxa, including C1q, lectin, and actin domains. Globally, transcript expression appeared reduced in response to predator kairomones and we hypothesize that this might be a result of metabolic suppression, as has been reported in other taxa in response to predation threat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oliver Tills
- Marine Biology and Ecology Research CentreUniversity of Plymouth, Drake CircusPlymouthUK
| | - Manuela Truebano
- Marine Biology and Ecology Research CentreUniversity of Plymouth, Drake CircusPlymouthUK
| | - Barbara Feldmeyer
- Molecular Ecology Group, Institute for Ecology, Evolution and DiversityGoethe‐UniversityFrankfurt am MainGermany
| | - Markus Pfenninger
- Molecular Ecology Group, Institute for Ecology, Evolution and DiversityGoethe‐UniversityFrankfurt am MainGermany
- Adaptation and ClimateSenckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research CentreFrankfurt am MainGermany
| | - Holly Morgenroth
- Marine Biology and Ecology Research CentreUniversity of Plymouth, Drake CircusPlymouthUK
| | - Tilman Schell
- Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum FrankfurtFrankfurtGermany
- LOWE‐TBG Centre for Translational Biodiversity GenomicsFrankfurtGermany
| | - Simon D. Rundle
- Marine Biology and Ecology Research CentreUniversity of Plymouth, Drake CircusPlymouthUK
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Mann K, Cerveau N, Gummich M, Fritz M, Mann M, Jackson DJ. In-depth proteomic analyses of Haliotis laevigata (greenlip abalone) nacre and prismatic organic shell matrix. Proteome Sci 2018; 16:11. [PMID: 29983641 PMCID: PMC6003135 DOI: 10.1186/s12953-018-0139-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2018] [Accepted: 05/25/2018] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The shells of various Haliotis species have served as models of invertebrate biomineralization and physical shell properties for more than 20 years. A focus of this research has been the nacreous inner layer of the shell with its conspicuous arrangement of aragonite platelets, resembling in cross-section a brick-and-mortar wall. In comparison, the outer, less stable, calcitic prismatic layer has received much less attention. One of the first molluscan shell proteins to be characterized at the molecular level was Lustrin A, a component of the nacreous organic matrix of Haliotis rufescens. This was soon followed by the C-type lectin perlucin and the growth factor-binding perlustrin, both isolated from H. laevigata nacre, and the crystal growth-modulating AP7 and AP24, isolated from H. rufescens nacre. Mass spectrometry-based proteomics was subsequently applied to to Haliotis biomineralization research with the analysis of the H. asinina shell matrix and yielded 14 different shell-associated proteins. That study was the most comprehensive for a Haliotis species to date. Methods The shell proteomes of nacre and prismatic layer of the marine gastropod Haliotis laevigata were analyzed combining mass spectrometry-based proteomics and next generation sequencing. Results We identified 297 proteins from the nacreous shell layer and 350 proteins from the prismatic shell layer from the green lip abalone H. laevigata. Considering the overlap between the two sets we identified a total of 448 proteins. Fifty-one nacre proteins and 43 prismatic layer proteins were defined as major proteins based on their abundance at more than 0.2% of the total. The remaining proteins occurred at low abundance and may not play any significant role in shell fabrication. The overlap of major proteins between the two shell layers was 17, amounting to a total of 77 major proteins. Conclusions The H. laevigata shell proteome shares moderate sequence similarity at the protein level with other gastropod, bivalve and more distantly related invertebrate biomineralising proteomes. Features conserved in H. laevigata and other molluscan shell proteomes include short repetitive sequences of low complexity predicted to lack intrinsic three-dimensional structure, and domains such as tyrosinase, chitin-binding, and carbonic anhydrase. This catalogue of H. laevigata shell proteins represents the most comprehensive for a haliotid and should support future efforts to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of shell assembly. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12953-018-0139-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karlheinz Mann
- 1Abteilung Proteomics und Signaltransduktion, Max-Planck-Institut für Biochemie, Am Klopferspitz 18, D-82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Nicolas Cerveau
- 2Department of Geobiology, Georg-August University of Göttingen, Goldschmidstr. 3, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Meike Gummich
- 3Universität Bremen, Institut für Biophysik, Otto Hahn Allee NW1, D-28334 Bremen, Germany
| | - Monika Fritz
- 3Universität Bremen, Institut für Biophysik, Otto Hahn Allee NW1, D-28334 Bremen, Germany
| | - Matthias Mann
- 1Abteilung Proteomics und Signaltransduktion, Max-Planck-Institut für Biochemie, Am Klopferspitz 18, D-82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Daniel J Jackson
- 2Department of Geobiology, Georg-August University of Göttingen, Goldschmidstr. 3, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
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8
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Dvorak M, Lackner R, Niederwanger M, Rotondo C, Schnegg R, Ladurner P, Pedrini-Martha V, Salvenmoser W, Kremser L, Lindner H, García-Risco M, Calatayud S, Albalat R, Palacios Ò, Capdevila M, Dallinger R. Metal binding functions of metallothioneins in the slugArion vulgarisdiffer from metal-specific isoforms of terrestrial snails. Metallomics 2018; 10:1638-1654. [DOI: 10.1039/c8mt00215k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Arion vulgarisis a European slug with a huge potential for accumulating and detoxifying heavy metals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Dvorak
- Institute of Zoology and Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of Innsbruck
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Reinhard Lackner
- Institute of Zoology and Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of Innsbruck
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Michael Niederwanger
- Institute of Zoology and Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of Innsbruck
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Claire Rotondo
- Institute of Zoology and Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of Innsbruck
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Raimund Schnegg
- Institute of Zoology and Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of Innsbruck
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Peter Ladurner
- Institute of Zoology and Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of Innsbruck
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Veronika Pedrini-Martha
- Institute of Zoology and Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of Innsbruck
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Willi Salvenmoser
- Institute of Zoology and Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of Innsbruck
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Leopold Kremser
- Innsbruck Medical University, Biocenter, Division of Clinical Biochemistry
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Herbert Lindner
- Innsbruck Medical University, Biocenter, Division of Clinical Biochemistry
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
| | - Mario García-Risco
- Departament de Química, Facultat de Ciències, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
- Barcelona
- Spain
| | - Sara Calatayud
- Departament de Genètica, Microbiologia i Estadística, and Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de Barcelona
- E-08028 Barcelona
- Spain
| | - Ricard Albalat
- Departament de Genètica, Microbiologia i Estadística, and Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de Barcelona
- E-08028 Barcelona
- Spain
| | - Òscar Palacios
- Departament de Química, Facultat de Ciències, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
- Barcelona
- Spain
| | - Mercè Capdevila
- Departament de Química, Facultat de Ciències, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
- Barcelona
- Spain
| | - Reinhard Dallinger
- Institute of Zoology and Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of Innsbruck
- A-6020 Innsbruck
- Austria
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Xiong YM, Yan ZH, Zhang JE, Li HY. Analysis of albumen gland proteins suggests survival strategies of developing embryos of Pomacea canaliculata. MOLLUSCAN RESEARCH 2017. [DOI: 10.1080/13235818.2017.1385896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ya-Ming Xiong
- Department of Aquiculture, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Zhi-Hui Yan
- Department of Aquiculture, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Jia-En Zhang
- Institute of Tropical and Subtropical Ecology, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Agro-Environment in the Tropics, Ministry of Agriculture, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China
- Guangdong Provincial Engineering Technology Research Center of Modern Eco-agriculture and Circular Agriculture, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Hai-Yun Li
- Department of Aquiculture, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China
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Schultz JH, Adema CM. Comparative immunogenomics of molluscs. DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPARATIVE IMMUNOLOGY 2017; 75:3-15. [PMID: 28322934 PMCID: PMC5494275 DOI: 10.1016/j.dci.2017.03.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2017] [Revised: 03/10/2017] [Accepted: 03/15/2017] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
Comparative immunology, studying both vertebrates and invertebrates, provided the earliest descriptions of phagocytosis as a general immune mechanism. However, the large scale of animal diversity challenges all-inclusive investigations and the field of immunology has developed by mostly emphasizing study of a few vertebrate species. In addressing the lack of comprehensive understanding of animal immunity, especially that of invertebrates, comparative immunology helps toward management of invertebrates that are food sources, agricultural pests, pathogens, or transmit diseases, and helps interpret the evolution of animal immunity. Initial studies showed that the Mollusca (second largest animal phylum), and invertebrates in general, possess innate defenses but lack the lymphocytic immune system that characterizes vertebrate immunology. Recognizing the reality of both common and taxon-specific immune features, and applying up-to-date cell and molecular research capabilities, in-depth studies of a select number of bivalve and gastropod species continue to reveal novel aspects of molluscan immunity. The genomics era heralded a new stage of comparative immunology; large-scale efforts yielded an initial set of full molluscan genome sequences that is available for analyses of full complements of immune genes and regulatory sequences. Next-generation sequencing (NGS), due to lower cost and effort required, allows individual researchers to generate large sequence datasets for growing numbers of molluscs. RNAseq provides expression profiles that enable discovery of immune genes and genome sequences reveal distribution and diversity of immune factors across molluscan phylogeny. Although computational de novo sequence assembly will benefit from continued development and automated annotation may require some experimental validation, NGS is a powerful tool for comparative immunology, especially increasing coverage of the extensive molluscan diversity. To date, immunogenomics revealed new levels of complexity of molluscan defense by indicating sequence heterogeneity in individual snails and bivalves, and members of expanded immune gene families are expressed differentially to generate pathogen-specific defense responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan H Schultz
- Center for Evolutionary and Theoretical Immunology, Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Coen M Adema
- Center for Evolutionary and Theoretical Immunology, Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
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11
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Ahn SJ, Martin R, Rao S, Choi MY. Neuropeptides predicted from the transcriptome analysis of the gray garden slug Deroceras reticulatum. Peptides 2017; 93:51-65. [PMID: 28502716 DOI: 10.1016/j.peptides.2017.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2017] [Revised: 05/04/2017] [Accepted: 05/06/2017] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
The gray garden slug, Deroceras reticulatum (Gastropoda: Pulmonata), is one of the most common terrestrial molluscs. Research for this slug has focused mainly on its ecology, biology, and management due to the severe damage it causes on a wide range of vegetables and field crops. However, little is known about neuropeptides and hormonal signalings. This study, therefore, aimed to establish the transcriptome of D. reticulatum and to identify a comprehensive repertoire of neuropeptides in this slug. Illumina high-throughput sequencing of the whole body transcriptome of D. reticulatum generated a total of 5.9 billion raw paired-end reads. De novo assembly by Trinity resulted in 143,575 transcripts and further filtration selected 120,553 unigenes. Gene Ontology (GO) terms were assigned to 30,588 unigenes, composed of biological processes (36.9%), cellular components (30.2%) and molecular functions (32.9%). Functional annotation by BLASTx revealed 39,987 unigenes with hits, which were further categorized into important functional groups based on sequence abundance. Neuropeptides, ion channels, ribosomal proteins, G protein-coupled receptors, detoxification, immunity and cytoskeleton-related sequences were dominant among the transcripts. BLAST searches and PCR amplification were used to identify 65 putative neuropeptide precursor genes from the D. reticulatum transcriptome, which include achatin, AKH, allatostatin A, B and C, allatotropin, APGWamide, CCAP, cerebrin, conopressin, cysteine-knot protein hormones (bursicon alpha/beta and GPA2/GPB5), elevenin, FCAP, FFamide, FVamide (enterin, fulicin, MIP and PRQFVamide), GGNG, GnRH, insulin, NdWFamide, NKY, PKYMDT, PRXamide (myomodulin, pleurin and sCAP), RFamide (CCK/SK, FMRFamide, FxRIamide, LFRFamide, luqin and NPF), and tachykinin. Over 330 putative peptides were encoded by these precursors. Comparative analysis among different molluscan species clearly revealed that, while D. reticulatum neuropeptide sequences are conserved in Mollusca, there are also some unique features distinct from other members of this species. This is the first transcriptome-wide report of neuropeptides in terrestrial slugs. Our results provide comprehensive transcriptome data of the gray garden slug, with a more detailed focus on the rich repertoire of putative neuropeptide sequences, laying the foundation for molecular studies in this terrestrial slug pest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seung-Joon Ahn
- USDA-ARS Horticultural Crops Research Unit,3420 NW Orchard Avenue, Corvallis, OR, 97330, USA; Department of Crop and Soil Science, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA
| | - Ruth Martin
- USDA-ARS Forage Seed and Cereal Research Unit, 3450 SW Campus Way, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA
| | - Sujaya Rao
- Department of Crop and Soil Science, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA
| | - Man-Yeon Choi
- USDA-ARS Horticultural Crops Research Unit,3420 NW Orchard Avenue, Corvallis, OR, 97330, USA.
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