Abstract
Female-to-male sex reversals (pseudomales) are common in lower vertebrates and have been found in natural populations, which is a concern under rapid changes in environmental conditions. Pseudomales can exhibit altered spermatogenesis. However, the regulatory mechanisms underlying pseudomale spermatogenesis remain unclear. Here, we characterized spermatogenesis in Chinese tongue sole (Cynoglossus semilaevis), a species with genetic and environmental sex determination, based on a high-resolution single-cell RNA-seq atlas of cells derived from the testes of genotypic males and pseudomales. We identified five germ cell types and six somatic cell types and obtained a single-cell atlas of dynamic changes in gene expression during spermatogenesis in Chinese tongue sole, including alterations in pseudomales. We detected decreased levels of Ca2+ signaling pathway-related genes in spermatogonia, insufficient meiotic initiation in spermatocytes, and a malfunction of somatic niche cells in pseudomales. However, a cluster of CaSR genes and MAPK signaling factors were upregulated in undifferentiated spermatogonia of pseudomales. Additionally, we revealed that Z chromosome-specific genes, such as piwil2, dhx37, and ehmt1, were important for spermatogenesis. These results improve our understanding of reproduction after female-to-male sex-reversal and provide new insights into the adaptability of reproductive strategies in lower vertebrates.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2018YFD0900301), the National Nature Science Foundation of China (31722058, 31802275, 31472269), the AoShan Talents Cultivation Program Supported by Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology (2017ASTCP-ES06), the Taishan Scholar Project Fund of Shandong of China to C.S., the National Ten-Thousands Talents Special Support Program to C.S., the Central Public-interest Scientific Institution Basal Research Fund, CAFS (2020TD19) and the China Agriculture Research System (CARS-47-G03).
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The data reported in this study are available in the CNGB Nucleotide Sequence Archive (CNSA: https://db.cngb.org/cnsa; accession number CNP0002135).
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Single-cell-resolution transcriptome map revealed novel genes involved in testicular germ cell progression and somatic cells specification in Chinese tongue sole with sex reversal
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Wang, HY., Liu, X., Chen, JY. et al. Single-cell-resolution transcriptome map revealed novel genes involved in testicular germ cell progression and somatic cells specification in Chinese tongue sole with sex reversal. Sci. China Life Sci. 66, 1151–1169 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11427-021-2236-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11427-021-2236-4