Sex determination in southern flounder, Paralichthys lethostigma, from the Texas Gulf Coast

Abstract

In marine flatfish of the genus Paralichthys, temperature plays a large role in sex determination. The most susceptible areas to temperature fluctuation are shallow water environments, particularly estuaries, which serve as essential nursery habitats for juvenile southern flounder. While in the estuaries, juveniles develop, and sex is determined. Southern flounder exhibit genotypic sex determination; however, the sex of females is highly influenced by temperature, which can result in phenotypic sex reversal. The temperature-sensitive enzyme complex responsible for estrogen biosynthesis in vertebrates is aromatase cytochrome P450 (P450arom), a critical component in ovarian differentiation. In this study, mRNA expression of P450arom was used to identify presumptive males and females exposed to a gradient of temperatures (18, 21, 24, 27, and 30°C) beginning at 35–40 or at 65–70mm total length (TL). This research identifies that sex is influenced by temperature between 35 and 65mm TL and establishes that increases in temperature from 18°C during this size range, produce increasingly male skewed sex ratios in southern flounder from Texas. The findings presented here are essential for understanding population dynamics of southern flounder and the potential effects climate change may have on wild populations.