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Particular transcription factors have a strong influence on the developmental regulation of gene expression. However, these factors can only exert control if the chromatin is primed for transcription. In this study, the events essential to the transcriptional activation of the rat gammaD-crystallin gene during in vitro differentiation of rat lens fiber cells are discussed. The results revealed that timing of appearance of transacting factors controls the activation and shutdown of the gammaD-crystallin promoter.

Sexual maturation from puberty to adulthood in European eels ( Anguilla anguilla ) occurs during and/or after the ~ 6000 km reproductive migration from their freshwater habitats to the spawning grounds in the Sargasso sea. This is the first study to simulate an anorexic, mixed-sex, group-wise freshwater migration (2 weeks; 689 km) and subsequent seawater migration (9 weeks; 3,103 km) under mimicked photothermal conditions, using farmed silver eels. Silver eels swam under an 8 hour light:16 hour dark regime in freshwater at 11.5 °C, and subsequently in complete darkness in seawater at daily fluctuating temperatures between 11.7 °C and 10.1 °C mimicking the vertical migrations in the Atlantic Ocean. The aim of these two consecutive experiments was to determine the effects of a simulated reproductive migration on the progression of sexual maturation. The freshwater migration significantly increased plasma testosterone levels in both migrating males and females, but did not enhance sexual maturation further as no significant increases in gonad weight, gonadosomatic index (GSI) nor eye index (EI) were observed. The subsequent seawater migration significantly increased gonad weight and GSI of the migrant males and, particularly, of the females (1.40 ± 0.06 vs. 1.00 ± 0.10%) vs. control groups, suggesting advancement of maturation. Also EI was significantly higher in migrant males (14.0 ± 0.6) as compared to their controls (12.3 ± 0.4). Plasma levels of the gonadotropins FSH and LH remained near the detection limits of the assays and levels were not elevated in migrating eels. These results show that simulation of migration under mimicked photothermal conditions has significant stimulating effects on early maturation which are presumably under steroid control. This brings farmed silver eels to a similar state of maturity as their wild conspecifics that are ready to embark on their oceanic migration. Simulated migration may therefore be used to condition farmed eels for the use as broodstock eels for further hormonal stimulation with gonadotropins in maturation protocols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Japanese eel is a much appreciated research object and very important for Asian aquaculture; however, its genomic resources are still limited. We have used a streamlined bioinformatics pipeline for the de novo assembly of the genome sequence of the Japanese eel from raw Illumina sequence reads. The total assembled genome has a size of 1.15Gbp, which is divided over 323,776 scaffolds with an N50 of 52,849bp, a minimum scaffold size of 200bp and a maximum scaffold size of 1.14Mbp. Direct comparison of a representative set of scaffolds revealed that all the Hox genes and their intergenic distances are almost perfectly conserved between the European and the Japanese eel. The first draft genome sequence of an organism strongly catalyzes research progress in multiple fields. Therefore, the Japanese eel genome sequence will provide a rich resource of data for all scientists working on this important fish species. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Accelerated by the introduction of Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS), a number of genomes of cyprinid fish species have been drafted, leading to a highly valuable collective resource of comparative genome information on cyprinids ( Cyprinidae ). In addition, NGS-based transcriptome analyses of different developmental stages, organs, or cell types, increasingly contribute to the understanding of complex physiological processes, including immune responses. Cyprinids are a highly interesting family because they comprise one of the most-diversified families of teleosts and because of their variation in ploidy level, with diploid, triploid, tetraploid, hexaploid and sometimes even octoploid species. The wealth of data obtained from NGS technologies provides both challenges and opportunities for immunological research, which will be discussed here. Correct interpretation of ploidy effects on immune responses requires knowledge of the degree of functional divergence between duplicated genes, which can differ even between closely-related cyprinid fish species. We summarize NGS-based progress in analysing immune responses and discuss the importance of respecting the presence of (multiple) duplicated gene sequences when performing transcriptome analyses for detailed understanding of complex physiological processes. Progressively, advances in NGS technology are providing workable methods to further elucidate the implications of gene duplication events and functional divergence of duplicates genes and proteins involved in immune responses in cyprinids. We conclude with discussing how future applications of NGS technologies and analysis methods could enhance immunological research and understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To enable selection of novel chemicals for new processes, there is a recognized need for alternative toxicity screening assays to assess potential risks to man and the environment. For human health hazard assessment these screening assays need to be translational to humans, have high throughput capability, and from an animal welfare perspective be harmonized with the principles of the 3Rs (Reduction, Refinement, Replacement). In the area of toxicology a number of cell culture systems are available but while these have some predictive value, they are not ideally suited for the prediction of developmental and reproductive toxicology (DART). This is because they often lack biotransformation capacity, multicellular or multi- organ complexity, for example, the hypothalamus pituitary gonad (HPG) axis and the complete life cycle of whole organisms. To try to overcome some of these limitations in this study, we have used Caenorhabditis elegans (nematode) and Danio rerio embryos (zebrafish) as alternative assays for DART hazard assessment of some candidate chemicals being considered for a new commercial application. Nematodes exposed to Piperazine and one of the analogs tested showed a slight delay in development compared to untreated animals but only at high concentrations and with Piperazine as the most sensitive compound. Total brood size of the nematodes was also reduced primarily by Piperazine and one of the analogs. In zebrafish Piperazine and analogs showed developmental delays. Malformations and mortality in individual fish were also scored. Significant malformations were most sensitively identified with Piperazine, significant mortality was only observed in Piperazine and only at the higest dose. Thus, Piperazine seemed the most toxic compound for both nematodes and zebrafish. The results of the nematode and zebrafish studies were in alignment with data obtained from conventional mammalian toxicity studies indicating that these have potential as developmental toxicity screening systems. The results of these studies also provided reassurance that none of the Piperazines tested are likely to have any significant developmental and/or reproductive toxicity issues to humans when used in their commercial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluates the effects of temperature on hCG-induced spermatogenesis in European eel ( Anguilla anguilla ), subjected to three thermal regimes: T10: 10 °C (first 4 weeks), 15 °C (next 3 weeks) and 20 °C (last 6 weeks); T15: 15 °C (first 4 weeks) and 20 °C (last 9 weeks); and T20: constant 20 °C for the duration of the experiment. At 10 °C, maturation stopped in the A spermatogonial stage (SPG1), and no further maturation was observed until the temperature was ≥ 15 °C. With the aim of explaining these results, the influence of temperature on steroidogenic enzyme gene expression and steroid synthesis was tested. The initial synthesis of androgens (T and 11-KT) increased at SPG1, and was not influenced by temperature. Likewise, the gene expression of the steroidogenic enzymes linked to androgen synthesis ( aacyp11a1 , aacyp17-I and aa11βHSD ) also increased at SPG1. In contrast, no correlation was seen between the increase in E2 and the aacyp19a1 gene expression peak in the testes, with E2 increasing as a consequence of the seawater acclimation carried out before hormonal treatment, and peaking the aacyp19a1 gene expression at B spermatogonial stage (SPG2). Aacyp21 gene expression was also higher at SPG2, and this stage was only reached when the rearing temperature was ≥ 15 °C. In conclusion, androgen synthesis is not dependent on temperature, but further maturation requires higher temperatures in order to induce a change in the steroidogenic pathway towards estrogen and progestin synthesis. This study demonstrates that temperature plays a crucial role in European eel maturation, even perhaps controlling gonad development during the reproductive migration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: European eels (Anguilla anguilla) migrate ~6000km towards their spawning area in the Sargasso Sea. Based on the recent discovery that males swim even more efficiently than females, it was predicted that males also would be able to swim ~6000km within six months. Additionally, eels do not mature naturally in captivity due to strong neural inhibition. Earlier, it was hypothesized that swimming exercise is a natural trigger to induce sexual maturation and may even result in full maturation. In the present study two groups of farmed male silver eels were subjected to either endurance swimming or resting for up to 6months. It was found that male eels were able to swim continuously for a total distance of 6670km within 6months. The body weight decrease in swimming and resting males after 6months was similar (<30g) underlining the extreme low energy cost of swimming. In contrast to our expectation long-term swimming did not induce sexual maturation in farmed silver eels, suggesting that swimming alone is not sufficient as a trigger for sexual maturation. In conclusion, male eels are efficient long distance swimmers and likely able to cover the distance to the Sargasso Sea within the expected time span of 6months. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

During migration, swimming in schools provides fish with a number of behavioural and ecological advantages, including increased food supply and reduced predation risk. Previous work shows that carangiform and tunniform swimming result in energetic advantages for individuals using a diamond swimming formation. However, little is known about the potential energetic advantage associated with schooling for anguilliform fish, such as European eel. European eels migrate over a long distance to their spawning area in the Sargasso Sea and may experience energetic advantages when swimming in schools. In this study the effect of group-wise swimming on the cost of transport was tested. In addition, the swimming pattern of eels swimming in groups was studied. Male silver eels were individually subjected to an increased velocity test (0.4–0.9ms−1) with increments of 0.1ms−1 every 2h. Groups comprising of seven males were swum following the same protocol. Video recordings were obtained to analyse tail beat frequency at the various water speeds. At all swimming speeds the oxygen consumption was significantly lower in group-wise vs. individually swimming males. The cost of transport at the optimal swimming speed of group-wise swimming males was significantly lower than that of the individually swimming males (21.3±3.2 vs. 32.0±0.6mgO2 kg−1 h−1, respectively). The optimal swimming speeds, however, were not significantly different (0.57±0.02 and 0.52±0.04ms−1 respectively). At speeds of 0.50ms−1 and above, tail beat frequency was lower in males swimming in groups than in males swimming individually (2.6±0.1 and 3.8±0.1, respectively). In contrast to the ‘diamond’ shape pattern of many group-wise swimming fish, eels tend to swim in a synchronized fashion parallel to each other, possibly reducing swimming costs by Karman gaiting. Although not an evidence, the present study provides support for the assumption of group migration in European eels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]