Comprehensive analysis of genes contributing to euryhalinity in the bull shark, Carcharhinus leucas; Na+-Cl- co-transporter is one of the key renal factors upregulated in acclimation to low-salinity environment [RESEARCH ARTICLE]

Itaru Imaseki, Midori Wakabayashi, Yuichiro Hara, Taro Watanabe, Souichirou Takabe, Keigo Kakumura, Yuki Honda, Keiichi Ueda, Kiyomi Murakumo, Rui Matsumoto, Yosuke Matsumoto, Masaru Nakamura, Wataru Takagi, Shigehiro Kuraku, and Susumu Hyodo Most cartilaginous fishes live principally in seawater (SW) environments, but a limited number of species including the bull shark, Carcharhinus leucas, inhabit both SW and freshwater (FW) environments during their life cycle. Euryhaline elasmobranchs maintain high internal urea and ion levels even in FW environments, but little is known about the osmoregulatory mechanisms that enable them to maintain internal homeostasis in hypoosmotic environments. In the present study, we focused on the kidney because this is the only organ that can excrete excess water from the body in a hypoosmotic environment. We conducted a transfer experiment of bull sharks from SW to FW and performed differential gene expression analysis between the two conditions using RNA-sequencing. A search for genes upregulated in the FW-acclimated bull shark kidney indicated that the expression of the Na+-Cl– cotransporter (NCC; Slc12a3) was 10 times higher in the FW-acclimated sharks compared with that in SW sharks. In the kidney, apically located NCC was observed in the late distal tubule and in the anterior half of the collecting tubule, where basolateral Na+/K+-ATPase was also expressed, implying that these segments contribute to NaCl reabsorption from the filtr...
Source: Journal of Experimental Biology - Category: Biology Authors: Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research