Identification and functional characterization of laminin receptor in the mud crab, Scylla paramamosain, in response to MCDV-1 challenge

Abstract

Laminin receptor (LR), which mediating cell adhesion to the extracellular matrix, plays a crucial role in cell signaling and regulatory functions. In the present study, a laminin receptor gene (SpLR) was cloned and characterized from the mud crab (Scylla paramamosain). The full length of SpLR contained an open reading frame (ORF) of 960 bp encoding 319 amino acids, a 5′ untranslated region (UTR) of 66 bp and a 3′ UTR of 49 bp. The predicted protein comprised two Ribosomal-S2 domains and a 40S-SA-C domain. The mRNA of SpLR was highly expressed in the gill, followed by the hepatopancreas. The expression of SpLR was up-regulated after mud crab dicistrovirus-1(MCDV-1) infection. Knocking down SpLR in vivo by RNA interference significantly down-regulated the expression of the immune genes SpJAK, SpSTAT, SpToll1, SpALF1 and SpALF5. This study shown that the expression level of SpToll1 and SpCAM in SpLR-interfered group significantly increased after MCDV-1 infection. Moreover, silencing of SpLR in vivo decreased the MCDV-1 replication and increased the survival rate of mud crabs after MCDV-1 infection. These findings collectively suggest a pivotal role for SpLR in the mud crab's response to MCDV-1 infection. By influencing the expression of critical innate immune factors and impacting viral replication dynamics, SpLR emerges as a key player in the intricate host-pathogen interaction, providing valuable insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying MCDV-1 pathogenesis in mud crabs.