Browsing by Author "Moura, Joana Maria Teixeira de"
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- Study of the expression of different genes of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) metabolism during the early paralarval development of the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris)Publication . Moura, Joana Maria Teixeira de; Cabrita, Elsa; Hontoria Danés, FranciscoThe common octopus, Octopus vulgaris, presents characteristics as high market price, high fecundity, short life cycle, rapid growth and high food conversion rates, which make this species a potential target for future aquaculture. However, two main problems have been pointed as the main causes for the high mortalities observed in the culture of this cephalopod: (i) the lack of standardized culture conditions and (ii) the absence of an appropriate diet that fulfil all the nutritional requirements of paralarvae. Particularly, the lack of a balance in lipid and fatty acid composition such as a deficiency in long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LC-PUFA) has been pointed out as one of the main problems. Additionally, it has been proved that the early life stages of octopus paralarvae have high PUFA requirements. LC-PUFA are considered key factors for a suitable growth during planktonic life of octopus and are biosynthesized by enzymes called desaturases and elongases. In the present study, our main objective was to study the expression of the genes encoding for the Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase with Δ9 activity (Scd), the Fatty acyl desaturase with Δ5 activity (Fad) and the Elongases of Very Long-Chain fatty acids (Elovl5 and Elovl4), all them involved in the LC-PUFA metabolism. The expression of these genes has been analyzed through quantitative PCR (qPCR) from hatching on (day 0) and at days 5, 10, 15 and 20 of paralarval development. These specific genes are already characterized for the adult octopus. Our results revealed the presence of all these enzymes in paralarvae during all the studied period. Moreover, despite some exceptions, a tendency of an increase of the expression of these genes from day 0 to day 20 is observed. This could suggest that each enzyme is incorporated/biosynthesized when the development becomes more complex and/or when this endogenous biosynthesis capacity appears as a response to a poor diet, in order to fulfill the nutritional requirements. The high expression at day 0 observed in scd and elovl5 could also indicate that the activation of the zygote genome can occurs during the embryonic development of the common octopus, although further research will be necessary. In conclusion, this study elucidates and clarifies how these genes are expressed in octopus paralarvae during the first days of development. It will allow to fill the knowledge gaps that still exist on the culture of Octopus vulgaris, possibly contributing to reduce the high mortalities observed in the early paralarval development, and, at the same time, to help to identify the essential fatty acids for paralarvae stages.