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Change of eye shape during metamorphosis in two flatfishes, Paralichthys olivaceus and Solea senegalensis, with comparison of eye shape within the Pleuronectiformes

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Abstract

The most remarkable developmental event during metamorphosis in flatfish (Pleuronectiformes) is the migration of their eyes; one eye migrates upwards, then passes through the dorsal midline, and finally stops on the other side. In this study, we determined that the ratio of the movable eye diameter on the transverse axis (DTA) to that on the vertical axis (DVA) increased during the metamorphosis of Paralichthys olivaceus and Solea senegalensis. Based on the recently proposed hypothesis that eye migration of flatfishes is caused by the push force from the proliferated tissue of the suborbital region, we postulated that the eye shape change is a result of the same force. Measurements of eye proportions in 20 species of adult flatfishes revealed that the DTA is constantly larger than the DVA, suggesting that the mechanisms of eye shape change and eye migration driven by proliferating cells in the suborbital tissue are universal among flatfishes.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, 31072201, The Program for the Professor of Special Appointment (Eastern Scholar) at Shanghai Institutions of Higher Learning, and Hydrobiology funding S30701 from the Leading Academic Discipline Project of the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, China. The experiments involved in the text comply with the current laws of China.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Key Laboratory of Exploration and Utilization of Aquatic Genetic Resources, Shanghai Ocean University, Ministry of Education, Shanghai, 201306, China

    Lekang Li, Jiayi Zheng & Baolong Bao

  2. Biology Department, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA, 50614-0394, USA

    Peter B. Berendzen

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  1. Lekang Li
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  2. Jiayi Zheng
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  3. Baolong Bao
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  4. Peter B. Berendzen
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Correspondence to Baolong Bao.

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Li, L., Zheng, J., Bao, B. et al. Change of eye shape during metamorphosis in two flatfishes, Paralichthys olivaceus and Solea senegalensis, with comparison of eye shape within the Pleuronectiformes. Ichthyol Res 60, 178–183 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-012-0332-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-012-0332-9

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