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A Sperm Spawn-Inducing Pheromone in the Silver Lip Pearl Oyster (Pinctada maxima)

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Abstract

Pheromones are considered to play an important role in broadcast spawning in aquatic animals, facilitating synchronous release of gametes. In oysters, the sperm has been implicated as a carrier for the spawn-inducing pheromone (SIP). In hatchery conditions, male pearl oysters (Pinctata maxima) can be stimulated to spawn through a variety of approaches (e.g. rapid temperature change), while females can only be induced to spawn through exposure to conspecific sperm, thus limiting development of targeted pairing, required for genetic research and management. The capacity for commercial production and improvement of genetic lines of pearl oysters could be greatly improved with access to a SIP. In this study, we prepared and sequenced crude and semi-purified P. maxima sperm extracts that were used in bioassays to localise the female SIP. We report that the P. maxima SIP is proteinaceous and extrinsically associated with the sperm membrane. Bioactivity from pooled RP-HPLC fractions, but not individual fractions, suggests that the SIP is multi-component. We conclude that crude sperm preparations, as described in this study, can be used as a sperm-free inducer of female P. maxima spawning, which enables for a more efficient approach to genetic breeding.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Paspaley Pearling Company for providing the pearl oysters used in this study, the Darwin Aquaculture Centre, Northern Territory Department of Primary Industry and Resources for the use of their facilities, and the University of the Sunshine Coast for use of the Genecology labs.

On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Darwin Aquaculture Centre, Channel Island, Darwin, Northern Territory, 0800, Australia

    A. Taylor & D. Mills

  2. Genecology Research Centre, Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore DC, Queensland, 4558, Australia

    A. Taylor, T. Wang, N. Ntalamagka, S. F. Cummins & A. Elizur

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  1. A. Taylor
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  2. D. Mills
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  3. T. Wang
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  4. N. Ntalamagka
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  5. S. F. Cummins
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  6. A. Elizur
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Correspondence to A. Elizur.

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Taylor, A., Mills, D., Wang, T. et al. A Sperm Spawn-Inducing Pheromone in the Silver Lip Pearl Oyster (Pinctada maxima). Mar Biotechnol 20, 531–541 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10126-018-9824-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10126-018-9824-6

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