Hypoxia and gene expression in spotted gar larvae

What is it about?

We studied the responses at RNA level to different water oxygen levels in gills and swim bladder of spotted gar (Lepisosteus oculatus), a bimodal breather. We first cloned three hypoxia-related genes, HIF-2α (hypoxia inducible factor), NHE-1 (Na+/H+ exchanger), and NHE-3, and uploaded their cDNA sequences in the GeneBank database. We then used One Step Taqman® real-time PCR to quantify the mRNA copies of target genes in gills and swim bladder of fish exposed to different water O2 levels. We also determined the protein expression of HIF-2α and nNOS (neuronal nitric oxide synthase) in the swim bladder by using confocal immunofluorescence.

Featured Image