Transcriptome analysis of the gills of Eriocheir sinensis provide novel insights into the molecular mechanisms of the pH stress response

• Published in: Gene 2022-07, Vol.833, p.146588-146588, Article 146588
• Main Authors: Zhu, Shang, Yan, Xinyao, Shen, Chenchen, Wu, Lv, Tang, Dan, Wang, Yue, Wang, Zhengfei
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Eriocheir sinensis; Gills; Molecular mechanism; pH stress
• ISSN: 0378-1119; 1879-0038
• DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2022.146588

[Display omitted] •We discovered it by accident and proved it experimentally that the Eriocheir sinensis may have the ability to regulate pH of water.•In the pH stress experiment, the pH was adjusted every hour to make the Eriocheir sinensis under stable stress.•Abnormal pH damaged the gill tissue of Eriocheir sinensis, and the longer the stress time, the more severe the damage.•We analyzed several genes that may play roles in pH stress relative to ion transport, immunity, and energy metabolism. Eriocheir sinensis is an important economic species in China, which is easily affected by pH changes. However, the molecular mechanism of the pH stress response in E. sinensis is still unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the molecular response mechanism of E. sinensis based on pH variation surveillance, histopathological evaluation and transcriptomic analyses. Firstly, pH variation surveillance showed that E. sinensis could actively regulate the pH of its environment. Meanwhile, the histopathological evaluation suggested that pH stress seriously damaged the gills, especially at high pH. Finally, transcriptome analysis showed that the expression of genes related to ion transport, immune stress, and energy metabolism significantly changed. Many genes played an important role in the pH response of E. sinensis, such as carbonic anhydrase (CA), mitochondrial proton/calcium exchanger protein (LETM1), recombinant sodium/hydrogen exchanger 3 (SLC9A3/NHE3), heat shock protein 90 alpha family class a member (HSP90A), alkylglycerone phosphate synthase (AGPS), succinate-CoA ligase ADP-forming subunit beta (LSC2), and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Our study revealed the molecular response mechanism of E. sinensis in response to pH stress, thus providing a basis for further research on the molecular mechanism of response to pH stress in aquatic animals.