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Glycoprotein hormone in the pituitary of hagfish and its evolutionary implications

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Abstract

The pituitary gland is present in all vertebrates, from agnathans (jawless vertebrates) to mammals, but not in invertebrates. Reproduction in gnathostomes (jawed vertebrates) is controlled by two pituitary gonadotropins (GTHs), luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone, which are part of the pituitary glycoprotein hormone (GPH) family. Hagfishes, which lack both jaws and vertebrae, are considered the most primitive vertebrate known, living or extinct. Accordingly, they are of particular importance in understanding the evolution of the pituitary GPHs and their functions related to vertebrate reproduction. Nevertheless, key elements of the reproductive endocrine system in hagfish have yet to be elucidated. Our current report has revealed the first identification of a functional GPH composed of two subunits that possess gonadotropic action at the pituitary of brown hagfish. It seems most likely that an ancestral GPH gave rise to only one GTH in hagfish pituitary and that multiplicity of GPHs arose later during the early evolution of gnathostomes. This paper briefly summarizes the latest findings on the hagfish GPH from an evolutionary point of view.

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Abbreviations

FSH:

Follicle-stimulating hormone

GPA:

Glycoprotein alpha subunit

GPB:

Glycoprotein beta subunit

GPH:

Glycoprotein hormone

GTH:

Gonadotropin

HPG axis:

Hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal axis

LH:

Luteinizing hormone

TSH:

Thyroid-stimulating hormone

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Acknowledgments

This work has been supported in part by Grant-in-Aid for Basic Research from the Ministry of Education, Japan, to K. U., S. M. and M. N. This work was also supported in part by Japanese Association for Marine Biology (JAMBIO, Project No. 23-38) from Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan. This work was also supported in part by National Science Foundation Grant NSF IOS-0849569 and NH AES Hatch 332 to S. A. S.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Marine Biology and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Miyazaki, Miyazaki, 889-2192, Japan

    Katsuhisa Uchida

  2. School of Marine Biosciences, Kitasato University, Sanriku, Iwate, 022-0101, Japan

    Shunsuke Moriyama

  3. Center for Molecular and Comparative Endocrinology and Biochemistry Program, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, 03824, USA

    Stacia A. Sower

  4. Sado Marine Biological Station, Niigata University, Sado, Niigata, 952-2135, Japan

    Masumi Nozaki

Authors
  1. Katsuhisa Uchida
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  2. Shunsuke Moriyama
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  3. Stacia A. Sower
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  4. Masumi Nozaki
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Correspondence to Katsuhisa Uchida.

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Uchida, K., Moriyama, S., Sower, S.A. et al. Glycoprotein hormone in the pituitary of hagfish and its evolutionary implications. Fish Physiol Biochem 39, 75–83 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-012-9657-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-012-9657-6

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