Transcriptome Sequencing and Comparative Analysis of Ovary and Testis Identifies Potential Key Sex-Related Genes and Pathways in Scallop Patinopecten yessoensis

Abstract

Bivalve mollusks have fascinatingly diverse modes of reproduction. However, research investigating sex determination and reproductive regulation in this group of animals is still in its infancy. In this study, transcriptomes of three ovaries and three testes of Yesso scallop were sequenced and analyzed. Transcriptome comparison revealed that 4394 genes were significantly different between ovaries and testes, of which 1973 were ovary-biased (upregulated in the ovaries) and 2421 were testis-biased. Crucial sex-determining genes that were previously reported in vertebrates and putatively present in bivalves, namely FOXL2, DMRT, SOXH, and SOXE, were investigated. The genes all possessed conserved functional domains and were detected in the gonads. Except for PySOXE, the other three genes were significantly differentially expressed between the ovaries and testes. PyFOXL2 was ovary-biased, and PyDMRT and PySOXH were testis-biased, suggesting that these three genes are likely to be key candidates for scallop sex determination/differentiation. Furthermore, GO and KEGG enrichment analyses were conducted for both ovary- and testis-biased genes. Interestingly, both neurotransmitter transporters and GABAergic synapse genes were overrepresented in the ovary-biased genes, suggesting that neurotransmitters, such as GABA and glycine, are likely to participate in scallop ovary development. Our study will assist in better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying bivalve sex determination and reproductive regulation.

Keywords: Gonad transcriptome; Neurotransmitter; Reproductive regulation; Sex determination; Yesso scallop.