Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES
Volume 208, Issue -, Pages 611-626Publisher
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2022.03.135
Keywords
Chitin synthase; Hybrid crab; RNA sequencing
Funding
- Leading Talent Project of Special Support Plan of Guangdong Province [2019TX05N067]
- Special Projects in Key Fields of Colleges and Universities in Guangdong Prov-ince [2020ZDZX1001]
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [42076133]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
By using RNA sequencing, the researchers identified the genetic basis underlying the eyestalk abnormality in novel mud crab hybrids, which is related to the differential expression of genes involved in chitin and cuticle synthesis.
Chitin is a kind of insoluble structural polysaccharide and plays different roles in different species. In crustaceans, it forms the structural components in the exoskeleton. In our previous studies, novel mud crab hybrids have been produced from the interspecific hybridization of Scylla serrata female x S. paramamosain male. Some of the hybrid crabs have been found to be morphologically (eyestalk) abnormal, but the genetic mechanism remains unknown. To address this question, we performed whole-transcriptome RNA sequencing on the control group (normal hybrids), abnormal hybrids, and S. paramamosain to uncover the genetic basis underlying this morphological abnormality. A total of 695 mRNAs, 10 miRNAs, 44 circRNAs, and 1957 lncRNAs were differentially expressed between normal and abnormal hybrids. Several differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with chitin and cuticle metabolism were identified, including chitin synthase, chitinase, chitin deacetylase, beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase, beta-1,4-endoglucanase, N-alpha-acetyltransferase, cuticle proprotein, early cuticle protein, and arthrodial cuticle protein. Functional analysis showed that DE miRNAs, DE circRNAs, DE lncRNAs, and lncRNA/circRNA-miRNAmRNA network were enriched in pathways related to the amino acid, carbohydrate, and glycogen metabolism. Considering the importance of the chitin and cuticle in exoskeleton formation, it can be concluded that the changes in the chitin and cuticle biosynthesis might have caused the eyestalk abnormality in hybrid crabs. These findings can lay the solid foundation for a better understanding of the important roles of chitin and cuticle related genes and the development of hybridization techniques in crustaceans.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available