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Molecular cloning, characterization and evolutionary analysis of vitellogenin in Chinese giant salamander Andrias davidianus

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Abstract

Vitellogenin (VTG) is the major precursor of yolk proteins and could transport many components into oocytes, and hence it was thought to be a potential marker of reproduction of oviparious animal. Andrias davidianus is a critically endangered amphibian species, of which the wild population decreased dramatically and the artificial breeding has been successfully established. In this study, a full-length VTG cDNA was cloned and characterized from A. davidianus (designated as AdVTG) using 5′ and 3′ rapid amplification cDNA ends and RT-PCR. The AdVTG cDNA is 5,418 base pair in length and it encodes 1,805 amino acid long protein with typical quadripartite domains and several conserved cleavage sites. The tissue expression pattern indicated that AdVTG is mainly expressed in liver in one-year old individual. The three-dimensional model of AdVTG constructed by homology modelling revealed the presence of conserved N-terminal β-sheet and lipid-binding cavity. Moreover, the phylogenetic analysis of VTG in metazoa was carried out, which revealed that Anura-specific gene duplication occurred after the divergence of Caudata. All these results would improve the understanding of the physiological roles of AdVTG in A. davidianus and contribute to elucidating the evolution of VTG in vertebrates.

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Abbreviations

MCMCMC:

Metropolis-coupled Markov chain Monte Carlo

PDB:

Protein Data Bank

RACE:

rapid amplification cDNA ends

SDS-PAGE:

sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis

VTG:

vitellogenin

VWD:

von Willebrand factor type D domain

WGD:

whole genome duplication

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Acknowledgements

This work is supported by the Special Fund for Agroscientific Research in the Public Interest (201203086), the foundation of Director of Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences (SZ2012-02), and the National Nonprofit Institute Research Grant of Freshwater Fisheries Research Center, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences (2015JBFM40). We also thank the constructive comments and suggestions of the anonymous referees that improved this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuhan, 430223, People’s Republic of China

    Hai-feng Tian, Yan Meng, Qiao-mu Hu & Han-bing Xiao

  2. Freshwater Fisheries Research Center, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuxi, Jiangsu, 214081, People’s Republic of China

    Qiao-mu Hu

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  1. Hai-feng Tian
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  2. Yan Meng
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Correspondence to Han-bing Xiao.

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Tian, Hf., Meng, Y., Hu, Qm. et al. Molecular cloning, characterization and evolutionary analysis of vitellogenin in Chinese giant salamander Andrias davidianus. Biologia 70, 1254–1262 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1515/biolog-2015-0143

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