Genome and Transcriptome Analyses Provide Insight into the Euryhaline Adaptation Mechanism of Crassostrea gigas

• Published in: PLoS ONE
• Main Authors: Meng, Jie, Zhu, Qihui, Zhang, Linlin, Li, Chunyan, Li, Li, She, Zhicai, Huang, Baoyu, Zhang, Guofan, Li, L
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2013
• Subjects: Science & Technology - Other Topics; Multidisciplinary Sciences; Science & Technology; CELL-VOLUME REGULATION; PACIFIC OYSTER; AMINO-ACID; INTERTIDAL ZONE; GENE-EXPRESSION; MARINE MOLLUSKS; MARKER GENES; SALINITY; STRESS; TAURINE; Pacific; Crassostrea gigas; Pacific oyster
• Online Access: http://ir.qdio.ac.cn/handle/337002/16701; https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0058563

Background: The Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas, has developed special mechanisms to regulate its osmotic balance to adapt to fluctuations of salinities in coastal zones. To understand the oyster's euryhaline adaptation, we analyzed salt stress effectors metabolism pathways under different salinities (salt 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 40 for 7 days) using transcriptome data, physiology experiment and quantitative real-time PCR. Background: The Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas, has developed special mechanisms to regulate its osmotic balance to adapt to fluctuations of salinities in coastal zones. To understand the oyster's euryhaline adaptation, we analyzed salt stress effectors metabolism pathways under different salinities (salt 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 40 for 7 days) using transcriptome data, physiology experiment and quantitative real-time PCR. Results: Transcriptome data uncovered 189, 480, 207 and 80 marker genes for monitoring physiology status of oysters and the environment conditions. Three known salt stress effectors (involving ion channels, aquaporins and free amino acids) were examined. The analysis of ion channels and aquaporins indicated that 7 days long-term salt stress inhibited voltage-gated Na+/K+ channel and aquaporin but increased calcium-activated K+ channel and Ca2+ channel. As the most important category of osmotic stress effector, we analyzed the oyster FAAs metabolism pathways (including taurine, glycine, alanine, beta-alanine, proline and arginine) and explained FAAs functional mechanism for oyster low salinity adaptation. FAAs metabolism key enzyme genes displayed expression differentiation in low salinity adapted individuals comparing with control which further indicated that FAAs played important roles for oyster salinity adaptation. A global metabolic pathway analysis (iPath) of oyster expanded genes displayed a co-expansion of FAAs metabolism in C. gigas compared with seven other species, suggesting oyster's powerful ability regarding FAAs metabolism, allowing it to adapt to ...