title: Molecular characterization of the BMP7 gene and its potential role in shell formation in Pinctada martensii.
abstract: Bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP7), also called osteogenetic protein-1, can induce bone formation. In this study, the obtained full-length cDNA of BMP7 from Pinctada martensii (Pm-BMP7) was 2972 bp, including a 5'-untranslated region (UTR) of 294 bp, an open reading fragment of 1290 bp encoding a 429 amino acid polypeptide and a 3'-UTR of 1388 bp. The deduced protein sequence of Pm-BMP7 contained a signal peptide, a pro-domain and a mature peptide. The mature peptide consisted of 135 amino acids and included a transforming growth factor β family domain with six shared cysteine residues. The protein sequence of Pm-BMP7 showed 66% identity with that from Crassostrea gigas. Two unigenes encoding Pm-BMPRI (Pm-BMP receptor I) and Pm-BMPRII were obtained from the transcriptome database of P. martensii. Tissue expression analysis demonstrated Pm-BMP7 and Pm-BMPRI were highly expressed in the mantle (shell formation related-tissue), while Pm-BMPRII was highly expressed in the foot. After inhibiting Pm-BMP7 expression using RNA interference (RNAi) technology, Pm-BMP7 mRNA was significantly down-regulated (p < 0.05) in the mantle pallium (nacre formation related-tissue) and the mantle edge (prismatic layer formation related-tissue). The microstructure, observed using a scanning electron microscope, indicated a disordered growth status in the nacre and obvious holes in the prismatic layer in the dsRNA-Pm-BMP7 injected-group. These results suggest that Pm-BMP7 plays a crucial role in the nacre and prismatic layer formation process of the shell.
authors.affiliation: Fishery College, Guangdong Ocean University, 40 East Jiefang Road, Xiashan District, Zhanjiang 524025, Guangdong, China. yanfanghdxs@163.com.
authors.forename: Fang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.affiliation: Fishery College, Guangdong Ocean University, 40 East Jiefang Road, Xiashan District, Zhanjiang 524025, Guangdong, China. rogerjoke1@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Shaojie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: Fishery College, Guangdong Ocean University, 40 East Jiefang Road, Xiashan District, Zhanjiang 524025, Guangdong, China. jiaoyu1981@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jiao
authors.affiliation: Fishery College, Guangdong Ocean University, 40 East Jiefang Road, Xiashan District, Zhanjiang 524025, Guangdong, China. dengyw@gdou.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Yuewen
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.affiliation: Fishery College, Guangdong Ocean University, 40 East Jiefang Road, Xiashan District, Zhanjiang 524025, Guangdong, China. gdhddxd@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Xiaodong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Du
authors.affiliation: Fishery College, Guangdong Ocean University, 40 East Jiefang Road, Xiashan District, Zhanjiang 524025, Guangdong, China. hrl8849@163.com.
authors.forename: Ronglian
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Fishery College, Guangdong Ocean University, 40 East Jiefang Road, Xiashan District, Zhanjiang 524025, Guangdong, China. wangqingheng@163.com.
authors.forename: Qingheng
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Fishery College, Guangdong Ocean University, 40 East Jiefang Road, Xiashan District, Zhanjiang 524025, Guangdong, China. A415878754@126.com.
authors.forename: Weiyao
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D055419:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 7 / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D060734:Nacre / Q000378:metabolism; D049911:Pinctada / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure*
chemical_list: D055419:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 7; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D060734:Nacre