Differential gene expression in normal and intersex Crustacea: New horizons for investigating impacts of pollution, parasitism and climate change.
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Portsmouth
Department Name: Sch of Biological Sciences
Abstract
Intersexuality is the abnormal condition when an organism displays characteristics of being both male and female. The study of intersexuality in wildlife provides excellent means for studying comparative biology of abnormal conditions in reproductive determination and/or differentiation. Intersex in crustaceans can occur through genetic abberations, parasitism, disrupted environmental sex determination (ESD) and through chemical exposure. The genetic knowledge of crustacean groups is currently very limited making the assessment of mechanisms behind environmental sex determination (ESD); feminsing parasites; and pollution very limited in this ecologically important group: thus hot-topics in environmental sciences such as endocrine disruption and climate change are difficult to assess without a clear understanding of the biology of ecologically relevant species. Considerable information exists at the physiological, individual and population level impacts of temperature, photoperiod, and parasitism on the sex determination in amphipods. In addition, several studies have suggested sexual disruption might also be occuring in this group following exposure to environmental contaminents. Following on from a NERC 454 pilot study into gene expression in normal and intersex gonadal tissues, this project would utilise high-throughput sequencing technologies to complete a suite of archived biological tissues for specific gene expression in male and female amphipods and two intersex phenotypes (intersex males and females); increasing substantially the genetic knowledge for this and crustacean groups in general. Intra and inter specific differences between organs of males, females, intersex males and intersex females would be compared by digital transcriptmics. Following some evidence that suggests that male crustaceans maybe impacted by pollution in a way that effects their male hormones and cause demasculinisation (a more female-like appearance). Further studies would experimently induce de-masculinisation in an intertidal amphipod using three methods; firstly, physically dissecting the male (androgenic) glands; secondly, through infection with feminising parasites; and thirdly, through chemical exposure to some known endocrine disrupting chemicals. These experiments would be used to examine comparisons in the genes being up/down regulated following each experimental manipulation. Key genes would be selected and utilised to develop assays to assess whether demasculinisation is occuring in field collected specimens from clean and polluted sites. All genetic data acquired during these studies would be made publically available through a specially designed database entitled AmphiBASE.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
Alex Ford (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Guler Y
(2012)
Integrating field and laboratory evidence for environmental sex determination in the amphipod, Echinogammarus marinus
in Marine Biology
Short S
(2012)
Corrigendum to ''Paramyxean-microsporidian co-infection in amphipods: Is the consensus that Microsporidia can feminise their hosts presumptive?" [Int. J. Parasitol. 42 (2012) 683-691]
in International Journal for Parasitology
Ford A
(2012)
Insights into sperm-fertilisation relationships in the Arthropoda with ecological significance modelled in an amphipod
in Invertebrate Reproduction & Development
Lewis C
(2012)
Infertility in male aquatic invertebrates: a review.
in Aquatic toxicology (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Short S
(2012)
A widespread and distinctive form of amphipod intersexuality not induced by known feminising parasites.
in Sexual development : genetics, molecular biology, evolution, endocrinology, embryology, and pathology of sex determination and differentiation
Short S
(2012)
Paramyxean-microsporidian co-infection in amphipods: is the consensus that Microsporidia can feminise their hosts presumptive?
in International journal for parasitology
Ford AT
(2012)
Intersexuality in Crustacea: an environmental issue?
in Aquatic toxicology (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Guerra A
(2014)
Predicting the variation in Echinogammarus marinus at its southernmost limits under global warming scenarios: can the sex-ratio make a difference?
in The Science of the total environment
Short S
(2014)
Crustacean intersexuality is feminization without demasculinization: implications for environmental toxicology.
in Environmental science & technology
Short S
(2014)
Vitellogenin is not an appropriate biomarker of feminisation in a crustacean.
in Aquatic toxicology (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Bossus MC
(2014)
Behavioural and transcriptional changes in the amphipod Echinogammarus marinus exposed to two antidepressants, fluoxetine and sertraline.
in Aquatic toxicology (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Fong PP
(2014)
The biological effects of antidepressants on the molluscs and crustaceans: a review.
in Aquatic toxicology (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Ford AT
(2016)
The effects of antidepressants appear to be rapid and at environmentally relevant concentrations.
in Environmental toxicology and chemistry
Description | We have developed a set of molecular tools to investigate the health of crustaceans. The initial objective was to design these tools with the view to determining whether pollution could alter the sex and reproductive development of crustaceans. In sequencing the entire set of genes for our model organism we have provided the scientific community with the ability to study crustaceans not previously possible due to the lack of molecular information. This dataset is now publicly available for anybody to use. We have more recently used this resource to measure the genes involved in behaviour following experiments exposing crustaceans to pharmaceutical pollutants such as antidepressants. We have discovered several new species of parasites, one capable of altering the sex of their crustacean hosts and another capable of altering their behaviour. We have also measured gene expression in organisms with and without infection with these parasites. We have investigated the role of environmental sex determination in crustaceans linking field and laboratory experiments to enlighten us about the possible implications of climate change. |
Exploitation Route | International regulatory authorities concerned with monitoring the health of aquatic environments would be able to use our datasets and experimental research tools to determine whether ecologically important crustaceans are being impacted by pollutants. |
Sectors | Agriculture Food and Drink Chemicals Environment Pharmaceuticals and Medical Biotechnology |
Description | Developing biomarkers of sewage effluent exposure in freshwater amphipods (Gammarus) |
Amount | £37,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | ETH Zurich |
Sector | Academic/University |
Country | Switzerland |
Start | 02/2017 |
End | 02/2020 |
Description | EU Interreg Program |
Amount | € 2,500,000 (EUR) |
Organisation | INTERREG IIIC North |
Sector | Public |
Country | France |
Start | 03/2013 |
End | 03/2015 |
Title | Sex change markers |
Description | We have developed a series of molecular tools to determine whether crustaceans are being feminised or demasculinized by pollutants. |
Type Of Material | Physiological assessment or outcome measure |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | Only just published and developed |
URL | http://www.port.ac.uk/uopnews/2014/11/10/shellfish-win-battle-against-being-feminised/ |
Title | Emarinus Trancriptome |
Description | Collection of transcriptomic sequences from male, female and intersex crustaceans funded by NERC made public to the scientific community |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2014 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Only just made the data public |
URL | http://gmod.org/wiki/GBrowse |
Description | IgNobel Talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Some media articles Further media attention to research |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://www.port.ac.uk/uopnews/2014/04/03/ig-nobel-event-celebrates-weird-and-wonderful-research/ |
Description | NERC Podcast - Planet Earth |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Podcast on the development to molecular tools to determine whether crustaceans are changing sex in response to pollution. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://planetearth.nerc.ac.uk/multimedia/story.aspx?id=1785&cookieConsent=A |