Abstract
The Australian redclaw crayfish (Cherax quadricarinatus) has recently received attention as an emerging candidate for sustainable aquaculture production in Australia and worldwide. More importantly, C. quadricarinatus serves as a good model organism for the commercially important group of decapod crustaceans as it is distributed worldwide, easy to maintain in the laboratory and its reproductive cycle has been well documented. In order to better understand the key reproduction and development regulating mechanisms in decapod crustaceans, the molecular toolkit available for model organisms such as C. quadricarinatus must be expanded. However, there has been no study undertaken to establish the C. quadricarinatus neuropeptidome. Here we report a comprehensive study of the neuropeptide genes expressed in the eyestalk in the Australian crayfish C. quadricarinatus. We characterised 53 putative neuropeptide-encoding transcripts based on key features of neuropeptides as characterised in other species. Of those, 14 neuropeptides implicated in reproduction regulation were chosen for assessment of their tissue distribution using RT-PCR. Further insights are discussed in relation to current knowledge of neuropeptides in other species and potential follow up studies. Overall, the resulting data lays the foundation for future gene-based neuroendocrinology studies in C. quadricarinatus.
Highlights
The Australian redclaw crayfish (Cherax quadricarinatus) has recently received attention as an emerging candidate for sustainable aquaculture production in Australia and worldwide
The analysis indicated that Red pigment concentrating hormone (RPCH), Adipokinetic hormone/Corazonin related peptide (ACP) and Crz mature peptides are more closely related to each other compared with gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH), located within the same clade, while GnRHs are well clustered within their own clade
The current study has provided new information concerning putative neuropeptide genes in C. quadricarinatus by mining of eyestalk transcripts, building upon accumulating understanding of crustacean neuropeptides involved in key physiological processes
Summary
The Australian redclaw crayfish (Cherax quadricarinatus) has recently received attention as an emerging candidate for sustainable aquaculture production in Australia and worldwide. The crustacean eyestalk (together with the supra-oesophageal and thoracic ganglia), is known to be the primary source of expression and secretion of key factors which regulate many aspects of crustacean behaviour and physiology, including growth and reproduction[10,11,12]. These biological processes operate under the multifaceted control of biogenic amines, neuropeptides, hormones and lipid metabolites such as methyl farnesoate and ecdysteriods[13]. These findings highlight that while our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of neuropeptides involved in crustacean reproduction processes is quite advanced, it is yet still far from being complete
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