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Molecular cloning and characterization of Dmc1, a gene involved in gametogenesis, from the whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei

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Abstract

In order to gain a better understanding of the developmental processes of shrimp germ cells, the molecular cloning and characterization of a meiosis-related gene, Dmc1, was carried out using the whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei. The cDNA of the L. vannamei Dmc1 homologue (LvDmc1) was 1,647 bp long and contained a 1,023-bp open reading frame corresponding to 341 amino acid residues. The deduced amino acid sequence contained motifs conserved in the RecA/Rad51 superfamily to which Dmc1 homologues belong and showed high identities with Dmc1 of other animals, including invertebrate and vertebrate species. RT-PCR revealed the presence of transcripts of LvDmc1 in gonads having meiotic germ cells. In situ hybridization analysis showed that LvDmc1 mRNA was abundantly expressed in premeiotic spermatogonia and oogonia, but not in gonadal somatic cells. LvDmc1 is thus a potentially useful indicator of the early stages of germ cell development.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Research and Development Program for New Bio-industry Initiatives of the Bio-oriented Technology Research Advancement Institution (BRAIN) of Japan. We are grateful to Y. Furusawa and H. Endo of the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences for technical assistance and rearing of the experimental animals.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8686, Japan

    Tomoyuki Okutsu, Bong Jung Kang, Yukio Maeno & Marcy N. Wilder

  2. Department of Marine Biosciences, Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 108-8477, Japan

    Misako Miwa & Goro Yoshizaki

Authors
  1. Tomoyuki Okutsu
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  2. Bong Jung Kang
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  3. Misako Miwa
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  4. Goro Yoshizaki
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  5. Yukio Maeno
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  6. Marcy N. Wilder
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Correspondence to Marcy N. Wilder.

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Okutsu, T., Kang, B.J., Miwa, M. et al. Molecular cloning and characterization of Dmc1, a gene involved in gametogenesis, from the whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei . Fish Sci 76, 961–969 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-010-0295-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-010-0295-6

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