@article{BiscottiCarducciBaruccaetal.2020, author = {Biscotti, Maria Assunta and Carducci, Federica and Barucca, Marco and Gerdol, Marco and Pallavicini, Alberto and Schartl, Manfred and Canapa, Adriana and Contar Adolfi, Mateus}, title = {The transcriptome of the newt Cynops orientalis provides new insights into evolution and function of sexual gene networks in sarcopterygians}, series = {Scientific Reports}, volume = {10}, journal = {Scientific Reports}, doi = {10.1038/s41598-020-62408-x}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-227326}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Amphibians evolved in the Devonian period about 400 Mya and represent a transition step in tetrapod evolution. Among amphibians, high-throughput sequencing data are very limited for Caudata, due to their largest genome sizes among terrestrial vertebrates. In this paper we present the transcriptome from the fire bellied newt Cynops orientalis. Data here presented display a high level of completeness, comparable to the fully sequenced genomes available from other amphibians. Moreover, this work focused on genes involved in gametogenesis and sexual development. Surprisingly, the gsdf gene was identified for the first time in a tetrapod species, so far known only from bony fish and basal sarcopterygians. Our analysis failed to isolate fgf24 and foxl3, supporting the possible loss of both genes in the common ancestor of Rhipidistians. In Cynops, the expression analysis of genes described to be sex-related in vertebrates singled out an expected functional role for some genes, while others displayed an unforeseen behavior, confirming the high variability of the sex-related pathway in vertebrates.}, language = {en} } @article{BiscottiAdolfiBaruccaetal.2018, author = {Biscotti, Maria Assunta and Adolfi, Mateus Contar and Barucca, Marco and Forconi, Mariko and Pallavicini, Alberto and Gerdol, Marco and Canapa, Adriana and Schartl, Manfred}, title = {A comparative view on sex differentiation and gametogenesis genes in lungfish and coelacanths}, series = {Genome Biology and Evolution}, volume = {10}, journal = {Genome Biology and Evolution}, number = {6}, doi = {10.1093/gbe/evy101}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-176774}, pages = {1430-1444}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Gonadal sex differentiation and reproduction are the keys to the perpetuation of favorable gene combinations and positively selected traits. In vertebrates, several gonad development features that differentiate tetrapods and fishes are likely to be, at least in part, related to the water-to-land transition. The collection of information from basal sarcopterygians, coelacanths, and lungfishes, is crucial to improve our understanding of the molecular evolution of pathways involved in reproductive functions, since these organisms are generally regarded as "living fossils" and as the direct ancestors of tetrapods. Here, we report for the first time the characterization of >50 genes related to sex differentiation and gametogenesis in Latimeria menadoensis and Protopterus annectens. Although the expression profiles of most genes is consistent with the intermediate position of basal sarcopterygians between actinopterygian fish and tetrapods, their phylogenetic placement and presence/absence patterns often reveal a closer affinity to the tetrapod orthologs. On the other hand, particular genes, for example, the male gonad factor gsdf (Gonadal Soma-Derived Factor), provide examples of ancestral traits shared with actinopterygians, which disappeared in the tetrapod lineage.}, language = {en} }