Transcriptome Analysis Reveals Osmoregulation and Low-Salt Adaptation in the Brain and Gills of Eleutheronema tetradactylum

作者：Weibin Liu, Zongfa Chen, J. N. Lu, Baogui Tang, Hui Zhou, Bei Wang, Jiansheng Huang, J J Li, Zhongliang Wang · 发表于：Fishes · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.3390/fishes11060351 · 研究领域：Physiological and biochemical adaptations、Ion Transport and Channel Regulation、Aquaculture Nutrition and Growth

The molecular coordination between the central nervous system and peripheral organs is fundamental to euryhalinity. This study elucidates the distinct adaptive strategies of the brain and gills in the four-finger threadfin (Eleutheronema tetradactylum), an aquaculture species of growing importance, during long-term (30-day) acclimation to low salinity (5 versus 25 control). A profound dichotomy in tissue-specific plasticity was uncovered: while the brain maintained remarkable transcriptional stability with only 10 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), the gills underwent extensive remodeling with 702 DEGs. Gill DEGs were functionally enriched in ion transport and metabolic remodeling, highlighted by the significant upregulation of the Na+-Cl− cotransporter (slc12a10) and the prolactin receptor (prlr), coupled with a profound downregulation (log2FC = −5.97) of aquaporin-1 (aqp1). This indicates a concerted strategy to enhance ion uptake while minimizing water permeability. In contrast, the brain’s subtle response was dominated by the upregulation of key neuroendocrine hormones, including growth hormone (gh), prolactin (prl), and pro-opiomelanocortin (pomc). This suggests a top-down regulatory cascade. Integrative pathway analysis identified the PI3K-Akt and JAK-STAT signaling pathways as the primary conduits linking central hormonal signals to peripheral physiological adjustments. These results demonstrate that the euryhalinity of E. tetradactylum is achieved through a highly...