Functional characterization of a short neuropeptide F-related receptor in a lophotrochozoan, the mollusk Crassostrea gigas

• Published in: Journal of Experimental Biology
• Main Authors: Bigot, Laetitia, Beets, Isabel, Dubos, Marie-Pierre, Boudry, Pierre, Schoofs, Liliane, Favrel, Pascal
• Other Authors: Biologie des Organismes et Ecosystèmes Aquatiques (BOREA), Université de Caen Normandie (UNICAEN), Normandie Université (NU)-Normandie Université (NU)-Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université des Antilles (UA), Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement Marin (LEMAR) (LEMAR), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER)-Université de Brest (UBO)-Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer (IUEM), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université de Brest (UBO)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université de Brest (UBO)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER), ANR-08-GENM-0041,Gametogenes,Génomiques de la gamétogénèse chez l'huître creuse Crassostrea gigas(2008)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2014
• Subjects: ACL; Crassostrea gigas; Energy metabolism; Oyster; Reproduction; sNPF; Starvation; [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology; Pacific oyster
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-02548665; https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.104067

International audience Members of the short neuropeptide F (sNPF) family of peptides and their cognate receptors play key roles in a variety of physiological processes in arthropods. In silico screening of GigasDatabase, a specific expressed sequence tag database from the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas, resulted in the identification of a receptor (Cg-sNPFR-like) phylogenetically closely related to sNPF receptors (sNPFRs) of insects. A reverse endocrinology approach was undertaken to identify the peptide ligand(s) of this orphan receptor. Though structurally distinct from insect sNPFs, three RFamide peptides derived from the same precursor, i.e. GSLFRFamide, SSLFRFamide and GALFRFamide, specifically activate the receptor in a dose-dependent manner, with respective EC50 values (half-maximal effective concentrations) of 1.1, 2.1 and 4.1 mu mol l(-1). We found that both Cg-sNPFR-like receptor and LFRFamide encoding transcripts are expressed in the oyster central nervous system and in other tissues as well, albeit at lower levels. Mass spectrometry analysis confirmed the wide distribution of LFRFamide mature peptides in several central and peripheral tissues. The Cg-sNPFR-like receptor was more abundantly expressed in ganglia of females than of males, and upregulated in starved oysters. In the gonad area, highest receptor gene expression occurred at the start of gametogenesis, when storage activity is maximal. Our results suggest that signaling of LFRFamide peptides through the Cg-sNPFR-like receptor might play a role in the coordination of nutrition, energy storage and metabolism in C. gigas, possibly by promoting storage at the expense of reproduction.