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Seasonal Changes in Hepatic Gene Expression Reveal Modulation of Multiple Processes in Rainbow Smelt (Osmerus mordax)

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Abstract

Rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) are freeze-resistant fish that accumulate glycerol and produce an antifreeze protein during winter. Quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qPCR) and subtractive hybridization studies have previously revealed five genes in rainbow smelt liver to be differentially regulated in winter in comparison with the fall when water temperatures are warmer. In order to further define the suite of processes that are regulated seasonally, we undertook a large-scale analysis of gene expression by hybridization of smelt cDNA to the salmonid 16K cGRASP microarray. In total, 69 genes were identified as up-regulated and 14 genes as down-regulated under winter conditions. A subset of these genes was examined for differential regulation by qPCR in the individual cDNA samples that were pooled for microarray analysis. Ten of the 15 genes tested showed significant change in the same direction as microarray results, whereas one showed significant change in the opposite direction. Fructose-bisphosphate aldolase B and the cytosolic NAD-dependent glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase were among the most highly up-regulated genes, a result supporting a metabolic focus on glycerol synthesis during winter. Modulation of other processes, including endoplasmic reticulum stress, lipid metabolism and transport, and protein synthesis, was also suggested by the qPCR analysis of array-identified genes. The 15 genes were subsequently examined by qPCR for seasonal variation in expression over five sampling times between October and March, and ten showed significant variation in expression over the sampling period. Taken together, these results provide new understanding of the biochemical adaptations of vertebrates to an extremely low seasonal temperature.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Jason Williams (NRC Institute for Marine Biosciences; NRC-IMB). Matthew Rise (OSC), and Glenn Cooper (University of Victoria) for technical advice regarding hybridization to the cGRASP microarray. We are grateful to Suzanne Penny (NRC-IMB) for helpful discussion regarding data analysis and to Pung-Pung Huang (Academia Sinica) for sharing detailed microarray results from his laboratory. We also thank Stephen O’Leary (NRC-IMB) for review of the manuscript. This project was supported by NRC-IMB, Genome Canada, and Genome BC. WRD holds the Canada Research Chair in Marine Bioscience. This is NRC publication number 51736.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Marine Biosciences, National Research Council, Halifax, NS, Canada, B3H 3Z1

    Robert C. Richards & K. Vanya Ewart

  2. Ocean Sciences Centre, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL, Canada, A1C 5S7

    Connie E. Short & William R. Driedzic

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  1. Robert C. Richards
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  2. Connie E. Short
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Correspondence to K. Vanya Ewart.

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Richards, R.C., Short, C.E., Driedzic, W.R. et al. Seasonal Changes in Hepatic Gene Expression Reveal Modulation of Multiple Processes in Rainbow Smelt (Osmerus mordax). Mar Biotechnol 12, 650–663 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10126-009-9252-8

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