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Fish Reproduction: Molecular Mechanism and Extrinsic Factors Affecting the Gonad...
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Fish Reproduction: Molecular Mechanism and Extrinsic Factors Affecting the Gonad Development

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Aquatic Animals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 4822

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Irfan Ahmad Bhat

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Life and Environmental Sciences, School of Engineering and Natural Sciences, University of Iceland, Saemundargata 2, 101 Reykjavik, Iceland
Interests: fish genetics and breeding; nanotechnology; reproductive endocrinology in fish
Prof. Dr. Mingyou Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Key Laboratory of Integrated Rice-Fish Farming, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China
Interests: fish germ cells; fish stem cells; cell transplantation; fish sex determination and differentiation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Reproduction in fish plays an important role in maintaining the population for future generations, such as other higher organisms on this planet. Gonads are the basis of reproduction, producing milt and ova and upon fertilization giving rise to young ones. Fish show gonochorism, uniparental (gynogenesis and androgenesis), as well as hermaphroditic (protandrous, protogynous, etc.) modes of reproduction. During embryonic development, there is the involvement of a complex genetic cascade, which programs the events for gonadal differentiation and development. There are specific types of cells known as primordial germ cells (PGCs) from which gonads arise after migrating from the place of origin to the final site of maturation and form the cellular basis of reproduction. All the events, from the formation and growth of PGC to the final migration, involve molecular factors at every step which work in a coordinated manner, and any deviation leads to either sex reversal or sterility. After sex differentiation, the growth of gonads is influenced by the hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal (HPG) axis which regulates gonad development, reproduction, and fertility by promoting or inhibiting the production of gonadal sex steroids and their function. In this issue, the papers submitted should be related to the molecular patterns of genes involved in fish reproduction, particularly gonad development. Further, deviations in the expression of genes by intrinsic or extrinsic factors and their influence on final gonadal growth and maturation will be considered.

Dr. Irfan Ahmad Bhat
Prof. Dr. Mingyou Li
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • fish
  • reproduction
  • gonad
  • PGC
  • sex differentiation
  • HPG axis
  • hormones
  • steroids

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 7842 KiB  
Article
Characterization of Two Gonadal Genes, zar1 and wt1b, in Hermaphroditic Fish Asian Seabass (Lates calcarifer)
by Han Cui, Haoyu Zhu, Wenzhuo Ban, Yulin Li, Ruyi Chen, Lingli Li, Xiaoling Zhang, Kaili Chen and Hongyan Xu
Animals 2024, 14(3), 508; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14030508 - 03 Feb 2024
Viewed by 614
Abstract
Zygote arrest-1 (Zar1) and Wilms’ tumor 1 (Wt1) play an important role in oogenesis, with the latter also involved in testicular development and gender differentiation. Here, Lczar1 and Lcwt1b were identified in Asian seabass (Lates calcarifer), a hermaphrodite fish, as the [...] Read more.
Zygote arrest-1 (Zar1) and Wilms’ tumor 1 (Wt1) play an important role in oogenesis, with the latter also involved in testicular development and gender differentiation. Here, Lczar1 and Lcwt1b were identified in Asian seabass (Lates calcarifer), a hermaphrodite fish, as the valuable model for studying sex differentiation. The cloned cDNA fragments of Lczar1 were 1192 bp, encoding 336 amino acids, and contained a zinc-binding domain, while those of Lcwt1b cDNA were 1521 bp, encoding a peptide of 423 amino acids with a Zn finger domain belonging to Wt1b family. RT-qPCR analysis showed that Lczar1 mRNA was exclusively expressed in the ovary, while Lcwt1b mRNA was majorly expressed in the gonads in a higher amount in the testis than in the ovary. In situ hybridization results showed that Lczar1 mRNA was mainly concentrated in oogonia and oocytes at early stages in the ovary, but were undetectable in the testis. Lcwt1b mRNA was localized not only in gonadal somatic cells (the testis and ovary), but also in female and male germ cells in the early developmental stages, such as those of previtellogenic oocytes, spermatogonia, spermatocytes and spermatids. These results indicated that Lczar1 and Lcwt1b possibly play roles in gonadal development. Therefore, the findings of this study will provide a basis for clarifying the mechanism of Lczar1 and Lcwt1b in regulating germ cell development and the sex reversal of Asian seabass and even other hermaphroditic species. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fish Reproduction: Molecular Mechanism and Extrinsic Factors Affecting the Gonad Development)
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15 pages, 4597 KiB  
Article
Molecular Characterization, Expression Pattern, DNA Methylation and Gene Disruption of Figla in Blotched Snakehead (Channa maculata)
by Yang Zhang, Yuntao Lu, Feng Xu, Xiaotian Zhang, Yuxia Wu, Jian Zhao, Qing Luo, Haiyang Liu, Kunci Chen, Shuzhan Fei, Xiaojuan Cui, Yuandong Sun and Mi Ou
Animals 2024, 14(3), 491; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14030491 - 01 Feb 2024
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Abstract
Figla is one of the earliest expressed genes in the oocyte during ovarian development. In this study, Figla was characterized in C. maculata, one of the main aquaculture species in China, and designated as CmFigla. The length of CmFigla cDNA [...] Read more.
Figla is one of the earliest expressed genes in the oocyte during ovarian development. In this study, Figla was characterized in C. maculata, one of the main aquaculture species in China, and designated as CmFigla. The length of CmFigla cDNA was 1303 bp, encoding 197 amino acids that contained a conserved bHLH domain. CmFigla revealed a female-biased expression patterns in the gonads of adult fish, and CmFigla expression was far higher in ovaries than that in testes at all gonadal development stages, especially at 60~180 days post-fertilization (dpf). Furthermore, a noteworthy inverse relationship was observed between CmFigla expression and the methylation of its promoter in the adult gonads. Gonads at 90 dpf were used for in situ hybridization (ISH), and CmFigla transcripts were mainly concentrated in oogonia and the primary oocytes in ovaries, but undetectable in the testes. These results indicated that Figla would play vital roles in the ovarian development in C. maculata. Additionally, the frame-shift mutations of CmFigla were successfully constructed through the CRISPR/Cas9 system, which established a positive foundation for further investigation on the role of Figla in the ovarian development of C. maculata. Our study provides valuable clues for exploring the regulatory mechanism of Figla in the fish ovarian development and maintenance, which would be useful for the sex control and reproduction of fish in aquaculture. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fish Reproduction: Molecular Mechanism and Extrinsic Factors Affecting the Gonad Development)
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17 pages, 3984 KiB  
Article
Comparative Transcriptome Analysis Reveals the Effect of Aurantiochytrium sp. on Gonadal Development in Zebrafish
by Yanlin Huang, Hao Yang, Yikai Li, Yuwen Guo, Guangli Li and Huapu Chen
Animals 2023, 13(15), 2482; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13152482 - 01 Aug 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 901
Abstract
Aurantiochytrium sp. has received much attention as a potential resource for mass production of omega-3 fatty acids, which contribute to improved growth and reproduction in aquatic animals. In this study, we evaluated the gonadal index changes in zebrafish supplemented with 1–3% Aurantiochytrium sp. [...] Read more.
Aurantiochytrium sp. has received much attention as a potential resource for mass production of omega-3 fatty acids, which contribute to improved growth and reproduction in aquatic animals. In this study, we evaluated the gonadal index changes in zebrafish supplemented with 1–3% Aurantiochytrium sp. crude extract (TE) and the effects of ex vivo environmental Aurantiochytrium sp. on oocytes. 1% TE group showed significant improvement in the gonadal index, and both in vitro incubation and intraperitoneal injection promoted the maturation of zebrafish oocytes. In contrast, the transcriptome revealed 576 genes that were differentially expressed between the 1% TE group and the control group, including 456 up-regulated genes and 120 down-regulated genes. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) and Gene Ontology (GO) pathway analysis of differentially expressed genes indicated that Aurantiochytrium sp. potentially affects pathways such as lipid metabolism, immune regulation, and oocyte development in zebrafish. The results of this study enriched the knowledge of Aurantiochytrium sp. in regulating gonadal development in zebrafish and provided a theoretical basis for its application in aquaculture. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fish Reproduction: Molecular Mechanism and Extrinsic Factors Affecting the Gonad Development)
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18 pages, 2600 KiB  
Article
Insights into Early Ontogenesis of Salmo salar: RNA Extraction, Housekeeping Gene Validation and Transcriptional Expression of Important Primordial Germ Cell and Sex-Determination Genes
by Irfan Ahmad Bhat, Milena Malgorzata Dubiel, Eduardo Rodriguez and Zophonías Oddur Jónsson
Animals 2023, 13(6), 1094; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13061094 - 19 Mar 2023
Viewed by 2024
Abstract
The challenge in extracting high-quality RNA impedes the investigation of the transcriptome of developing salmonid embryos. Furthermore, the mRNA expression pattern of important PGC and SD genes during the initial embryonic development of Salmo salar is yet to be studied. So, in the [...] Read more.
The challenge in extracting high-quality RNA impedes the investigation of the transcriptome of developing salmonid embryos. Furthermore, the mRNA expression pattern of important PGC and SD genes during the initial embryonic development of Salmo salar is yet to be studied. So, in the present study, we aimed to isolate high-quality RNA from eggs and developing embryos to check vasa, dnd1, nanos3a, sdf1, gsdf, amh, cyp19a, dmrt1 and foxl2 expression by qPCR. Additionally, four HKGs (GAPDH, UB2L3, eEf1a and β-actin) were validated to select the best internal control for qPCR. High-quality RNA was extracted, which was confirmed by spectrophotometer, agarose gel electrophoresis and Agilent TapeStation analysis. UB2L3 was chosen as a reference gene because it exhibited lower intra- and inter-sample variation. vasa transcripts were expressed in all the developmental stages, while dnd1 was expressed only up to 40 d°C. Nanos3a was expressed in later stages and remained at its peak for a shorter period, while sdf1 showed an irregular pattern of mRNA expression. The mRNA expression levels of SD genes were observed to be upregulated during the later stages of development, prior to hatching. This study presents a straightforward methodology for isolating high-quality RNA from salmon eggs, and the resulting transcript profiles of significant PGC and SD genes in S. salar could aid in improving our comprehension of reproductive development in this commercially important species. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fish Reproduction: Molecular Mechanism and Extrinsic Factors Affecting the Gonad Development)
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