Comparative Transcriptomics of Gonads Reveals the Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Gonadal Development in Giant Freshwater Prawns (<i>Macrobrachium rosenbergii</i>)

Guang Yang; Zhendong Qin; Zhijie Lu; Rishen Liang; Lijuan Zhao; Gan Pan; Li Lin; Kai Zhang

doi:10.3390/jmse10060737

Journal of Marine Science and Engineering (May 2022)

Comparative Transcriptomics of Gonads Reveals the Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Gonadal Development in Giant Freshwater Prawns (<i>Macrobrachium rosenbergii</i>)

Guang Yang,
Zhendong Qin,
Zhijie Lu,
Rishen Liang,
Lijuan Zhao,
Gan Pan,
Li Lin,
Kai Zhang

Affiliations

Guang Yang: Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution and Environmental Safety & MOE Key Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry of Environment, School of Environment, SCNU Environmental Research Institute, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
Zhendong Qin: Guangdong Provincial Water Environment and Aquatic Products Security Engineering Technology, Research Center, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Aquatic Animal Diseases and Waterfowl Breeding, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Guangzhou 510225, China
Zhijie Lu: Guangdong Provincial Water Environment and Aquatic Products Security Engineering Technology, Research Center, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Aquatic Animal Diseases and Waterfowl Breeding, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Guangzhou 510225, China
Rishen Liang: Guangdong Provincial Water Environment and Aquatic Products Security Engineering Technology, Research Center, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Aquatic Animal Diseases and Waterfowl Breeding, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Guangzhou 510225, China
Lijuan Zhao: Guangdong Provincial Water Environment and Aquatic Products Security Engineering Technology, Research Center, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Aquatic Animal Diseases and Waterfowl Breeding, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Guangzhou 510225, China
Gan Pan: Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Healthy and Safe Aquaculture, College of Life Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
Li Lin: Guangdong Provincial Water Environment and Aquatic Products Security Engineering Technology, Research Center, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Aquatic Animal Diseases and Waterfowl Breeding, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Guangzhou 510225, China
Kai Zhang: Guangdong Provincial Water Environment and Aquatic Products Security Engineering Technology, Research Center, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Aquatic Animal Diseases and Waterfowl Breeding, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Guangzhou 510225, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10060737
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 10, no. 6
p. 737

Abstract

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The giant freshwater prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii, is a prawn that has economic significance throughout the world. It exhibits sex-related growth dimorphism, whereby the males grow significantly more rapidly than the females. Therefore, a study on the molecular regulatory mechanism, which underlies the sexual differentiation of M. rosenbergii, is of both scientific and commercial importance. However, a scarcity of genomic and transcriptomic resources severely limits our knowledge of the sexual differentiation mechanisms in M. rosenbergii. Here, transcriptome sequencing of several gonadic samples of males and females in M. rosenbergii was performed to investigate the molecular basis underlying gonadal development. Our results showed that 2149 unigenes presented as differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the ovaries of females compared to the testes of males, which contained 484 down-regulated and 1665 up-regulated genes. Enrichment analysis of DEGs revealed many of these genes to be related to sexual differentiation and gonadal development. From our transcriptome analyses, and as confirmed by quantitative real-time PCR, male-related genes (Mrr, MRPINK, IR, IAGBP, TESK1, and dsx) in the testes were significantly up-regulated, and female-related genes (ERR, Sxl3, cyclinB, Dmrt99B, PPP2A, and ADCY9) in the ovaries were also significantly up-regulated. This indicates the potential role these genes play in the gonadal development of M. rosenbergii. Furthermore, multiple signal transduction pathways relating to gonadal maturation and spermatogenesis, including MAPK, were identified herein. Our data also supports previous ideas that IAG and IAGBP-IR signaling schemes could help in the regulation of testis’ development in M. rosenbergii and the ERR gene could regulate ovarian development by affecting the expression of cyclinB, PPP2A, and ADCY9. The data from this study provides incredibly usefully genomic resources for future research on the sexual differentiation and practical aquaculture of M. rosenbergii.

Published in Journal of Marine Science and Engineering

ISSN: 2077-1312 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Naval Science: Naval architecture. Shipbuilding. Marine engineering; Geography. Anthropology. Recreation: Oceanography
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/jmse

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