Patterns of Gene Expression Variation across Body Parts of the Hydrothermal Vent Shrimp Nautilocaris saintlaurentae

Abstract

Since deep-sea hydrothermal vents have been targeted for mining mineral resources, concerns about the potential impacts of mining on vent ecosystems have gradually increased. The vent alvinocaridid shrimp is one of the dominant endemic vent organisms. We collected an experimental species, Nautilocaris saintlaurentae, from the Tonga Arc in the Southwest Pacific Ocean, and firstly determined the sequences of seven housekeeping genes (HKGs) and three stress-related genes in this study. The stability of the HKGs was evaluated and the expression levels of targeted genes were measured in different body parts, the cephalothorax, abdomen, and whole body, to provide information on which parts of nonmodel species can be used for ecotoxicological studies. Based on geNorm platform, multiple combinations of HKGs were tested. The stability of the HKG expression in each body part indicated that the cephalothorax can be used alone and also demonstrated that using at least three HKGs provides suitable interpretations for mRNA real-time quantitative PCR arrays in N. saintlaurentae. Although analysis of specific body part subdivisions was not carried out, our results suggested that anatomical characteristics should be considered when investigating biological functions at a molecular level. Finally, this study revealed upregulation of stress-responsive genes in the cephalothorax of N. saintlaurentae with environmental changes.