Plasticity of opsin gene expression in the adult red shiner (Cyprinella lutrensis) in response to turbid habitats

Vision is very important to fish as it is required for foraging food, fighting competitors, fleeing from predators, and finding potential mates. Vertebrates express opsin genes in photoreceptor cells to receive visual signals, and the variety of light levels in aquatic habits has driven fish to evolve multiple opsin genes with expression profiles that are highly plastic. In this study, red shiners ( Cyprinella lutrensis ) were exposed to four water turbidity treatments and their opsin genes were cloned to elucidate how opsin gene expression could be modulated by ambient light conditions. Opsin gene cloning revealed that these fish have single RH1 , SWS1 , SWS2 and LWS genes and two RH2 genes. Phylogenetic analysis also indicated that these two RH2 opsin genes– RH2A and RH2B –are in-paralogous. Using quantitative PCR, we found evidence that opsin expression is plastic in adults. Elevated proportional expression of LWS in the cone under ambient light and turbid treatment indicated that the red shiner’s visual spectrum displays a red shift in response to increased turbidity.