Molecular characterization and expression profile of three Fem-1 genes in Eriocheir sinensis provide a new insight into crab sex-determining mechanism

The FEM-1 protein of Caenorhabditis elegans plays a crucial role in the nematode sex-determination pathway. Here, we reported the characterization of three members of Fem-1 gene family in Eriocheir sinensis (designated EsFem-1a, EsFem-1b, and EsFem-1c), which were homologs of the nematode FEM-1 prot...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part B: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 2015-11, Vol.189, p.6-14
Main Authors: Song, Chengwen, Cui, Zhaoxia, Hui, Min, Liu, Yuan, Li, Yingdong
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Ankyrin Repeat
Base Sequence
Brachyura - chemistry
Brachyura - genetics
Brachyura - physiology
Embryonic development
Eriocheir sinensis
Female
Gonads - metabolism
Larval development
Male
Molecular Sequence Data
Organ Specificity
Phylogeny
Real-time PCR
Sequence Alignment
Sex determination
Sex Determination Processes
Transcriptome
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Summary:The FEM-1 protein of Caenorhabditis elegans plays a crucial role in the nematode sex-determination pathway. Here, we reported the characterization of three members of Fem-1 gene family in Eriocheir sinensis (designated EsFem-1a, EsFem-1b, and EsFem-1c), which were homologs of the nematode FEM-1 protein. The amino acid sequences of EsFem-1a, EsFem-1b, and EsFem-1c contained eight, nine, and eight ankyrin repeats, respectively. None of the ankyrin repeats had its own specific signature, and the evolution of ankyrin repeat was not completely independent. The predicted three-dimensional structure of EsFem-1 proteins exhibited highly similar superhelical conformation, especially the N-terminal six contiguous ankyrin repeats, which provided a binding surface for the protein–protein interaction. Phylogenetic tree based on the amino acid sequences revealed that EsFem-1a, EsFem-1b, and EsFem-1c were divided into three obvious separated clades. EsFem-1 genes were highly expressed in fertilized egg, 2–4 cell and blastula stage comparing with larval stage (P
ISSN:1096-4959
1879-1107
DOI:10.1016/j.cbpb.2015.07.003