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New osmoregulatory genes identified in the European eel (Anguilla anguilla) by a microarray study
Author(s) -
Kalujnaia Svetlana,
McWilliam Iain,
Feilen Anja,
Nicholson John,
Zaguinaiko Vitalii,
Hazon Neil,
Cramb Gordon
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.21.6.a1395-c
Subject(s) - biology , osmoregulation , microarray , gene , suppression subtractive hybridization , euryhaline , adaptation (eye) , dna microarray , gene expression , genetics , cdna library , salinity , fish <actinopterygii> , fishery , ecology , neuroscience
The life cycle of the European eel includes two migratory periods, the second being the migration of indigenous freshwater (FW) eels back to the Sargasso Sea for reproduction. Various anatomical and physiological adaptations are induced which allow transition to sea water (SW). The aim of this study was to identify and characterise changes in gene expression within the major osmoregulatory tissues which accompany the physiological adaptations required for life in the SW environment. Various tissues were sampled from fish at selected intervals over a 5 month period following FW/SW transfer and RNA was isolated. Suppressive Subtractive Hybridization (SSH) was used for enrichment of differentially expressed genes. Microarrays comprising 6144 cDNAs from brain, gill, intestine and kidney libraries were hybridized with appropriate targets and analysed; 770 differentially expressed clones were selected and sequenced. Microarray results were validated by Northern blotting and qPCR for 30 genes. Some genes, such as the Na K‐ATPase, are already known to be involved in osmoregulation but the functional roles of a number of others, such as the myeloid protein (associated with the immune response), need to be elucidated. In addition, the collection of full sequences for various unknown salinity‐regulated genes is required to obtain more information about their precise function in SW adaptation.