The Regulatory Mechanism of Sexual Development in Decapod Crustaceans

Ardavan Farhadi,Shengkang Li,Mhd Ikhwanuddin,Wenxiao Cui,Huaiping Zheng,Hongyu Ma,Yueling Zhang

doi:10.3389/fmars.2021.679687

Abstract

Crustacean culture has been developing rapidly in various parts of the world. Therefore, it is important to understand their reproductive biology. Insulin-like androgenic gland hormone (IAG) secreted from the androgenic gland (AG) is widely accepted as a key regulator of sexual differentiation in male crustaceans. However, recently several sex-related genes (i.e.,CFSH,DEAD-boxfamily,Tra-2,Sxl,Dsx,Fem-1,Soxgene family,Foxl2, andDmrtgene family) have been identified via transcriptomic analysis in crustaceans, indicating that sexual differentiation in crustaceans is more complicated than previously expected. It has been found that several non-coding RNAs (i.e., miRNAs, lncRNAs, and piRNAs) and IAG receptors may be involved in the sexual development of decapods. Identification and study of the regulation mechanism of sex-related genes, non-coding RNAs, and IAG receptors will provide valuable information regarding sexual development in decapods. In this review, the roles of hormonal and genetic factors in both males and females are discussed. In males, crustacean female sex hormone (CFSH),Sxl,Dmrtgene family,Dsx,Soxgene family,GEM,Fem-1, l-GnRH-III, and corazonin play important roles inIAGregulation in the “eyestalk-IAG-testis” endocrine axis. Unlike males, the regulation mechanism and interaction of sexual genes are relatively unknown in females. However,CFSH,IAG,Fem-1,FAMeT,Slo,UCHLs,Erk2,Cdc2,EGFR,Vg,VgR, andVIHseem to play crucial roles during ovarian development. This study summarizes the available information in the field, highlights gaps, and lays the foundations for further studies and a better understanding of the regulatory mechanism of sexual development in decapods.

Highlights

The order Decapoda includes approximately 17,000 species of crayfish, shrimps, crabs, and lobsters (De Grave et al, 2009)
In C. sapidus, ovarian development and season affected the expression level of both Insulin-like androgenic gland hormone (IAG) and insulinlike peptide binding protein (ILPBP) in the ovary. These results indicated that ovarina IAG and ILPBP may be involved in the ovarian development (Huang et al, 2017)
Based on the matching results many sex-related genes such as FAMET, VASA, Sox genes, and eyestalk neuropeptide genes could be regulated by these miRNAs miR-34 may indirectly regulate reproduction via binding to the 3 −untranslated regions (UTRs) of moult inhibiting hormone (MIH), CHH, ecdysone receptor (EcR), and farnesoic acid O-methyltransferase (FAMeT) genes and suppressing their expression miR-9/miR-263 can negatively regulate the expression of the ERK pathway genes (ERK2, MEK2, and Rap-1b) in the ovary miR-277 could inhibit Spvih gene expression by targeting the 3 UTR of the Spvih gene Obtained 187 and 225 miRNAs from ovary and testis, respectively, including 188 known and 65 novel miRNAs

Summary

Introduction

The order Decapoda includes approximately 17,000 species of crayfish, shrimps, crabs, and lobsters (De Grave et al, 2009). Further studies are required to identify more sex-related factors such as genes, non-coding RNAs and IAG hormones, which could be involved in the sexual development of decapods.

Results

Conclusion