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Background: Consumption of seafood can produce allergic symptoms in susceptible individuals and crustacean allergies are the most frequently reported causes of allergic reactions. Methods: An allergen from the muscle of the white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei was purified by ion exchange chromatography and identified by mass spectrometry of tryptic peptides and its specific enzymatic activity. Moreover, the corresponding full-length cDNA was obtained from an L. vannamei muscle cDNA library. Results: A 40-kDa protein was purified and identified as arginine kinase and its cDNA of 1.4 kb encoded a 356 amino acid protein. The obtained arginine kinase was recognized by IgE in serum from shrimp-allergic individuals using ELISA and immunoblotting analysis. Conclusions: This is the first allergen reported for the Pacific white shrimp species; it was named Lit v 2 and has a 96% identity to Pen m 2 from Penaeus monodon.

We present a new transcriptome assembly of the Pacific whiteleg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei), the species most farmed for human consumption. Its functional annotation, a substantial improvement over previous ones, is provided freely. RNA-Seq with Illumina HiSeq technology was used to analyze samples extracted from shrimp abdominal muscle, hepatopancreas, gills and pleopods. We used the Trinity and Trinotate software suites for transcriptome assembly and annotation, respectively. The quality of this assembly and the affiliated targeted homology searches greatly enrich the curated transcripts currently available in public databases for this species. Comparison with the model arthropod Daphnia allows some insights into defining characteristics of decapod crustaceans. This large-scale gene discovery gives the broadest depth yet to the annotated transcriptome of this important species and should be of value to ongoing genomics and immunogenetic resistance studies in this shrimp of paramount global economic importance.

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Background Tuna muscle greening is a problem that occurs after heating. A hypothesis has been postulated to address this problem, involving a conserved Cys residue at position 10 (Cys-10) present on tuna myoglobin (Mb) that is exposed during the thermic treatment, forming a disulfide bond with free cysteine (Cys) in the presence of trimethylamine oxide (TMAO), resulting in the greening of the tuna Mb. Methods We present a study using skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) metmyoglobin (MbFe(III)-H2O) where the effect of free Cys (1–6 mM), TMAO (1.33 mM), and catalase on the greening reaction (GR) was monitored by UV-vis spectrometry during thermal treatment at 60 °C for 30 min. Moreover, the participation of Cys-10 on the GR was evaluated after its blocking with N-ethymaleimide. Results The GR occurred in tuna MbFe(III)-H2O after heat treatment with free Cys, forming sulfmyoglobin (MbFe(II)-S) as the responsible pigment for the tuna greening. However, the rate constants of MbFe(II)-S production depended on Cys concentration (up to 4 mM) and occurred regardless of the TMAO presence. We postulate that two consecutive reactions involve an intermediate ferrylmyoglobin (promoted by H2O2) species with a subsequent MbFe(II)-S formation since the presence of catalase fosters the reduction of the rate reaction. Moreover, GR occurred even with blocked Cys-10 residues in tuna Mb and horse Mb (without Cys in its sequence). Discussion We found that GR is not exclusive to tuna Mb´s, and it can be promoted in other muscle systems. Moreover, Cys and thermal treatment are indispensable for promoting this pigmentation anomaly.

The high-quality draft genomes of two Vibrio parahaemolyticus strains, one that causes the acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND) in cultured shrimps (FIM-S1708+), and another that does not (FIM-S1392−) are reported. A chromosome-scale assembly for the FIM-S1392− genome is reported here. The analysis of the two genomes gives some clues regarding the genomic differences between the strains.

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Glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) are a family of detoxifying enzymes that catalyze the conjugation of glutathione (GSH) to electrophiles, thereby increasing the solubility of xenobiotics and aiding its excretion from the cell. The present work presents the inhibition of a mu-class GST of the marine shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei by copper (Cu2+) and cadmium (Cd2+). The protein was overexpressed in bacteria and its enzymatic activity measured using 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene. The mean inhibitory concentration (IC(50)) for shrimp GST against Cu2+) was 4.77 microM and for Cd2+ was 0.39 microM. A molecular model of the protein based on the crystal structure of a maize GST bound to cadmium showed that the metal binds in the GSH-binding site by coordination with Asp and Gln residues. These results are consistent with the experimental data and suggest that sublethal concentration of metals may affect the capacity of the organism to detoxify pesticides or xenobiotics.