Hepatopancreas transcriptome analyses provide new insights into the molecular regulatory mechanism of fast ovary maturation in Macrobrachium nipponense

Abstract

Background Macrobrachium nipponense is an economically and ecologically important freshwater prawn that is widely farmed in China. In contrast to other species of marine shrimp, M. nipponense has a short sexual maturity period, resulting in not only high stocking densities, but also a reduced survival rate and increased risk of hypoxia. Therefore, there is an urgent need to study the molecular mechanisms underlying fast ovary maturation in this species. Results Comparative transcriptome analysis was performed using hepatopancreatic tissue from female M. nipponense across five ovarian maturation stages to explore differentially expressed genes and pathways involved in ovarian maturation. In total, 118.01 Gb of data were generated from 15 transcriptomes. Approximately 90.46% of clean reads were mapped from the M. nipponense reference genome. A comprehensive comparative analysis between successive ovarian maturation stages generated 230–5814 differentially expressed genes. Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment was highly concentrated in the “biological process” category in all four comparison groups, and mainly focused on energy synthesis and accumulation, energy decomposition and transport. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment results showed that, among 20 significantly enriched KEGG pathways, nine were involved in the synthesis, degradation, and metabolism of carbohydrates, lipids, and other nutrient intermediates, suggesting that the hepatopancreas has an important role in energy supply during ovarian maturation. Furthermore, the “Insect hormone biosynthesis” pathway was found to have a dominant role in the development of the ovary from immaturity to maturity, supporting the hypothesis that ecdysteroid- and juvenile hormone-signaling pathways have an important role in hepatopancreas regulation of ovarian maturation. Conclusion Taken together, this study sheds light on the role of the hepatopancreas in the molecular regulation of ovary maturation in M. nipponense. The present study provided new insights for understanding the mechanisms of reproductive regulation in crustaceans.

Genome-Wide Identification of Vitellogenin Gene Family and Comparative Analysis of Their Involvement in Ovarian Maturation in Exopalaemon carinicauda

“…Vtg1 is expressed primarily in the hepatopancreas and ovaries, but only Vtg2 is expressed in the hepatopancreas of M. ensis [14]. Recently, some studies have reported the dual expression (in the hepatopancreas and ovaries) of Vtgs in species such as M. nipponensis [48], P. clarkii [29], and Scylla paramamosain [49].…”

Hepatopancreas Proteomic Analysis Reveals Key Proteins and Pathways in Regulatory of Ovary Maturation of Macrobrachium nipponense

“…Hepatopancreas transcriptomes of 5 ovary stages were compared to gain new insights into the role of the hepatopancreas in ovarian maturation in M. nipponense . Changes in proteins identified in hepatopancreas will provide further information for functional investigations of the molecular regulatory mechanisms involved crustaceans’ sexual maturation [ 22 ]. In present study, a TMT-based proteomics analysis was used to identify key proteins and pathways during ovarian development of M. nipponense .…”

“…ASM1510439v1, BioProjects: PRJNA646023; accession No. SAMN27687877–SAMN27687891, Bioproject PRJNA830321) [ 22 , 24 ]. The proteins whose quantitation were significantly different in the HE-I versus HE-II, HE-II versus HE-III, HE-III versus HE-IV, and HE-IV versus HE-V groups ( p < 0.05 and FC < 0.83 or fold change FC > 1.2) were defined as DEPs (differentially expressed proteins).…”

“…Our previous studies of five ovary developmental stages detected many ovary maturations related genes with more dominant expression in the hepatopancreas compared within ovaries, which provided strong evidence for regulating role of the hepatopancreas in ovarian maturation [ 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ]. Furthermore, comparative hepatopancreas transcriptomes of five ovary developmental stages were established [ 22 ] to provide a new field for studying fast ovary maturation in M. nipponense . In this study, a TMT-based (Tandem Mass Tag) liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) proteomics approach was employed to explore differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) in hepatopancreas of 5 ovary stages.…”

H2O2-Induced Oxidative Stress Responses in Eriocheir sinensis: Antioxidant Defense and Immune Gene Expression Dynamics

“…The hepatopancreas of E. sinensis is not only an edible tissue but also serves multiple physiological functions. It is involved in digestion, absorption, and storage of nutrients, particularly during molting [2] and gonadal maturation [3]. Additionally, it plays a role in detoxification and metabolic regulation.…”