Transcriptome analysis of Nautilus and pygmy squid developing eye provides insights in lens and eye evolution.

ABSTRACT: Coleoid cephalopods like squids have a camera-type eye similar to vertebrates. On the other hand, Nautilus (Nautiloids) has a pinhole eye that lacks lens and cornea. Since pygmy squid and Nautilus are closely related species they are excellent model organisms to study eye evolution. Having being able to collect Nautilus embryos, we employed next-generation RNA sequencing using Nautilus and pygmy squid developing eyes. Their transcriptomes were compared and analyzed. Enrichment analysis of Gene Ontology revealed that contigs related to nucleic acid binding were largely up-regulated in squid, while the ones related to metabolic processes and extracellular matrix-related genes were up-regulated in Nautilus. These differences are most likely correlated with the complexity of tissue organizatio

SUBMITTER: Sousounis K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3803853 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature