Molecular Characterization and Expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the Sex Reversal of <i>Monopterus albus</i>
<i>Monopterus albus</i> is a protogynous hermaphroditic fish that changes from female to male, but the underlying sex change mechanism remains as-yet unknown. In this study, we firstly cloned and characterized the sequence and protein structure of <i>unc-13d</i> of <i>M...
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2025-01-01
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| author | Zitong Lian Fang Meng Xueping Xia Junchao Fang Haifeng Tian Qiaomu Hu |
| author_facet | Zitong Lian Fang Meng Xueping Xia Junchao Fang Haifeng Tian Qiaomu Hu |
| author_sort | Zitong Lian |
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| description | <i>Monopterus albus</i> is a protogynous hermaphroditic fish that changes from female to male, but the underlying sex change mechanism remains as-yet unknown. In this study, we firstly cloned and characterized the sequence and protein structure of <i>unc-13d</i> of <i>M. albus.</i> We found that the genomic structure of <i>unc-13d</i> was different from other species. Expression was detected in the developing gonad by applying qRT-PCR and in situ hybridization. We found that the expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the ovotestis was higher than in the ovary and testes. A strong signal of <i>unc-13d</i> was detected in oocytes and granulosa cells in the ovary and spermatogonia and primary spermatocytes in the testes. We found that the promoter methylation of <i>unc-13d</i> was negatively correlated with gene expression in developing gonads, especially at site 114. A dual-luciferase assay was designed and revealed that <i>dmrt1</i> regulates promoter activity opposite to <i>foxl2</i>. In summary, during sex reversal, DNA methylation affects the binding of the transcription factor dmrt1 and <i>foxl2</i> in the promoter region through methylation and demethylation interactions to regulate the expression of <i>unc-13d</i> during gonadal development. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-b398801b5bf8421f877c84f0acc3fb2d2025-01-24T13:17:39ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152025-01-0115212210.3390/ani15020122Molecular Characterization and Expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the Sex Reversal of <i>Monopterus albus</i>Zitong Lian0Fang Meng1Xueping Xia2Junchao Fang3Haifeng Tian4Qiaomu Hu5Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, ChinaYangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, ChinaYangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, ChinaYangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, ChinaYangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, ChinaYangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan 430223, China<i>Monopterus albus</i> is a protogynous hermaphroditic fish that changes from female to male, but the underlying sex change mechanism remains as-yet unknown. In this study, we firstly cloned and characterized the sequence and protein structure of <i>unc-13d</i> of <i>M. albus.</i> We found that the genomic structure of <i>unc-13d</i> was different from other species. Expression was detected in the developing gonad by applying qRT-PCR and in situ hybridization. We found that the expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the ovotestis was higher than in the ovary and testes. A strong signal of <i>unc-13d</i> was detected in oocytes and granulosa cells in the ovary and spermatogonia and primary spermatocytes in the testes. We found that the promoter methylation of <i>unc-13d</i> was negatively correlated with gene expression in developing gonads, especially at site 114. A dual-luciferase assay was designed and revealed that <i>dmrt1</i> regulates promoter activity opposite to <i>foxl2</i>. In summary, during sex reversal, DNA methylation affects the binding of the transcription factor dmrt1 and <i>foxl2</i> in the promoter region through methylation and demethylation interactions to regulate the expression of <i>unc-13d</i> during gonadal development.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/2/122<i>Monopterus albus</i><i>unc-13d</i>expressionin situ hybridizationDNA methylation |
| spellingShingle | Zitong Lian Fang Meng Xueping Xia Junchao Fang Haifeng Tian Qiaomu Hu Molecular Characterization and Expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the Sex Reversal of <i>Monopterus albus</i> Animals <i>Monopterus albus</i> <i>unc-13d</i> expression in situ hybridization DNA methylation |
| title | Molecular Characterization and Expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the Sex Reversal of <i>Monopterus albus</i> |
| title_full | Molecular Characterization and Expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the Sex Reversal of <i>Monopterus albus</i> |
| title_fullStr | Molecular Characterization and Expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the Sex Reversal of <i>Monopterus albus</i> |
| title_full_unstemmed | Molecular Characterization and Expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the Sex Reversal of <i>Monopterus albus</i> |
| title_short | Molecular Characterization and Expression of <i>unc-13d</i> in the Sex Reversal of <i>Monopterus albus</i> |
| title_sort | molecular characterization and expression of i unc 13d i in the sex reversal of i monopterus albus i |
| topic | <i>Monopterus albus</i> <i>unc-13d</i> expression in situ hybridization DNA methylation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/2/122 |
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