title: Aquaporin family genes exhibit developmentally-regulated and host-dependent transcription patterns in the sea louse Caligus rogercresseyi.
abstract: Aquaporins are small integral membrane proteins that function as pore channels for the transport of water and other small solutes across the cell membrane. Considering the important roles of these proteins in several biological processes, including host-parasite interactions, there has been increased research on aquaporin proteins recently. The present study expands on the knowledge of aquaporin family genes in parasitic copepods, examining diversity and expression during the ontogeny of the sea louse Caligus rogercresseyi. Furthermore, aquaporin expression was evaluated during the early infestation of Atlantic (Salmo salar) and Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch). Deep transcriptome sequencing data revealed eight full length and two partial open reading frames belonging to the aquaporin protein family. Clustering analyses with identified Caligidae sequences revealed three major clades of aquaglyceroporins (Cr-Glp), classical aquaporin channels (Cr-Bib and Cr-PripL), and unorthodox aquaporins (Cr-Aqp12-like). In silico analysis revealed differential expression of aquaporin genes between developmental stages and between sexes. Male-biased expression of Cr-Glp1_v1 and female-biased expression of Cr-Bib were further confirmed in adults by RT-qPCR. Additionally, gene expressions were measured for seven aquaporins during the early infestation stage. The majority of aquaporin genes showed significant differential transcription expressions between sea lice parasitizing different hosts, with Atlantic salmon sea lice exhibiting overall reduced expression as compared to Coho salmon. The observed differences in the regulation of aquaporin genes may reveal osmoregulatory adaptations associated with nutrient ingestion and metabolite waste export, exposing complex host-parasite relationships in C. rogercresseyi.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biotechnology and Aquatic Genomics, Interdisciplinary Center for Aquaculture Research (INCAR), University of Concepción, P.O. Box 160-C., Chile.
authors.forename: Rodolfo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Farlora
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biotechnology and Aquatic Genomics, Interdisciplinary Center for Aquaculture Research (INCAR), University of Concepción, P.O. Box 160-C., Chile.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Valenzuela-Muñoz
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biotechnology and Aquatic Genomics, Interdisciplinary Center for Aquaculture Research (INCAR), University of Concepción, P.O. Box 160-C., Chile.
authors.forename: Jacqueline
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chávez-Mardones
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biotechnology and Aquatic Genomics, Interdisciplinary Center for Aquaculture Research (INCAR), University of Concepción, P.O. Box 160-C., Chile. Electronic address: crisgallardo@udec.cl.
authors.forename: Cristian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gallardo-Escárate
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D051397:Aquaglyceroporins / Q000235:genetics*; D033342:Copepoda / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D005393:Fish Diseases / Q000469:parasitology*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D059014:High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D017684:Oncorhynchus kisutch / Q000469:parasitology*; D016366:Open Reading Frames / Q000235:genetics; D020317:Salmo salar / Q000469:parasitology*; D014158:Transcription, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D059467:Transcriptome / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D051397:Aquaglyceroporins
keywords: Aquaporins; Oncorhynchus kisutch; Salmo salar; Sea lice