Neurodevelopment vs. the immune system: Complementary contributions of maternally-inherited gene transcripts and proteins to successful embryonic development in fish

• Published in: Genomics (San Diego, Calif.) Vol. 113; no. 6; pp. 3811 - 3826
• Main Authors: Żarski, Daniel, Le Cam, Aurelie, Frohlich, Thomas, Kösters, Miwako, Klopp, Christophe, Nynca, Joanna, Ciesielski, Sławomir, Sarosiek, Beata, Dryl, Katarzyna, Montfort, Jerome, Król, Jarosław, Fontaine, Pascal, Ciereszko, Andrzej, Bobe, Julien
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.11.2021; Elsevier
• Subjects: Animals; Egg quality; Embryo lethality; Embryonic Development - genetics; Female; Immune System - metabolism; Life Sciences; Pikeperch; Proteomics; Reproduction; RNA, Messenger - genetics; RNA, Messenger - metabolism; Transcriptomics; Embryo lethality; Reproduction; Pikeperch; Egg quality; Transcriptomics; Proteomics
• ISSN: 0888-7543; 1089-8646
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2021.09.003

The aim of this study was to investigate the respective contribution of maternally-inherited mRNAs and proteins to egg molecular cargo and to its developmental competence in fish using pikeperch as a model. Our study provides novel insights into the understanding of type-specific roles of maternally-inherited molecules in fish. Here we show, for the first time, that transcripts and proteins have distinct, yet complementary, functions in the egg of teleost fish. Maternally-inherited mRNAs would shape embryo neurodevelopment, while maternally-inherited proteins would rather be responsible for protecting the embryo against pathogens. Additionally, we observed that processes directly preceding ovulation may considerably affect the reproductive success by modifying expression level of genes crucial for proper embryonic development, being novel fish egg quality markers (e.g., smarca4 or h3f3a). These results are of major importance for understanding the influence of external factors on reproductive fitness in both captive and wild-type fish species. •Role of transcripts and proteins in eggs of teleostean species has been investigated.•Additional comparison of molecular profile of high and low egg quality was done.•We found that neurodevelopment is specific transcriptomic nongenetic inheritance factor.•Egg proteomic cargo was found to be primarily involved in immune response.•We also provide first set of candidate egg-quality-related transcripts for pikeperch.