Transcriptome Profiling Revealed Basis for Growth Heterosis in Hybrid Tilapia (<i>Oreochromis niloticus</i> ♀ × <i>O. aureus</i> ♂)
Jinglin Zhu,
Zhiying Zou,
Dayu Li,
Wei Xiao,
Jie Yu,
Binglin Chen,
Liangyi Xue,
Hong Yang
Affiliations
Jinglin Zhu
School of Marine Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
Zhiying Zou
Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fisheries and Germplasm Resources Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Freshwater Fisheries Research Center, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuxi 214081, China
Dayu Li
Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fisheries and Germplasm Resources Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Freshwater Fisheries Research Center, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuxi 214081, China
Wei Xiao
Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fisheries and Germplasm Resources Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Freshwater Fisheries Research Center, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuxi 214081, China
Jie Yu
Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fisheries and Germplasm Resources Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Freshwater Fisheries Research Center, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuxi 214081, China
Binglin Chen
Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fisheries and Germplasm Resources Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Freshwater Fisheries Research Center, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuxi 214081, China
Liangyi Xue
School of Marine Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
Hong Yang
Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fisheries and Germplasm Resources Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Freshwater Fisheries Research Center, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuxi 214081, China
Hybrid tilapia were produced from hybridization of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and blue tilapia (O. aureus). Comparative transcriptome analysis was carried out on the liver of hybrid tilapia and their parents by RNA sequencing. A total of 2319 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. Trend co-expression analysis showed that non-additive gene expression accounted for 67.1% of all DEGs. Gene Ontology and KEGG enrichment analyses classified the respective DEGs. Gene functional enrichment analysis indicated that most up-regulated genes, such as FASN, ACSL1, ACSL3, ACSL6, ACACA, ELOVL6, G6PD, ENO1, GATM, and ME3, were involved in metabolism, including fatty acid biosynthesis, unsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis, glycolysis, pentose phosphate pathway, amino acid metabolism, pyruvate metabolism, and the tricarboxylic acid cycle. The expression levels of a gene related to ribosomal biosynthesis in eukaryotes, GSH-Px, and those associated with heat shock proteins (HSPs), such as HSPA5 and HSP70, were significantly down-regulated compared with the parent tilapia lineages. The results revealed that the metabolic pathway in hybrid tilapia was up-regulated, with significantly improved fatty acid metabolism and carbon metabolism, whereas ribosome biosynthesis in eukaryotes and basal defense response were significantly down-regulated. These findings provide new insights into our understanding of growth heterosis in hybrid tilapia.
