Project description:We collected female and male Glossina fuscipes fuscipes from the field (Uganda) and determined the Spiroplasma infections status of each individual. We used RNA-seq to investigate the effects of Spiroplasma on the male and female gene expression in the reproductive tissues. We observed that Spiroplasma infection induces sex-biased expressional changes in genes that encode proteins critical for tsetse`s reproductive success.
2021-09-08 | GSE183197 | GEO
Project description:Analysis of Male Reproductive Gene Expression in Aposymbiotic Tsetse Flies
Project description:Male-derived accessory gland proteins (Acps) that are transferred to females during mating have profound effects on female reproductive physiology including increased ovulation, mating inhibition, and effects on sperm utilization and storage. The extreme rates of evolution seen in Acps may be driven by sperm competition and sexual conflict, processes which may ultimately drive complex interactions between female- and male-derived molecules and sperm. However, little is known of how gene expression in female reproductive tissues changes in response to the presence of male molecules and sperm. To characterize this response, we conducted parallel genomic and proteomic analyses of gene expression in the reproductive tract of 3-day-old unmated and mated female Drosophila melanogaster. Using DNA microarrays, we identified 539 transcripts that are differentially expressed in unmated vs. mated females and revealed a striking peak in differential expression at 6 hrs postmating and a marked shift from primarily down-regulated to primarily up-regulated transcripts within 3 hrs after mating. Combining two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry analyses, we identified 84 differentially expressed proteins at 3 hrs postmating, including proteins which appeared to undergo post-translational modification. Together, our observations define transcriptional and translational response to mating within the female reproductive tract and suggest a bimodal model of postmating gene expression initially correlated with mating and the final stages of female reproductive tract maturation and later with the declining presence of male reproductive molecules and with sperm maintenance and utilization. Experiment Overall Design: Three-day-old mated and unmated females were dissected to remove the lower reproductive tract (upper uterus, sperm-storage organs, and accessory glands). Mated females were dissected either immediately following mating (0 hr) or at 3, 6, or 24 hrs following the termination of mating. Tracts of 12-40 females of like category were pooled and total RNA extracted via a TRIzol-based protocol. Processing and labeling of transcript was performed by the Molecular Biology Core Facility at the Medical College of Georgia. Arrays from mated females at the different timepoints were compared to unmated females.
Project description:Small-scale microarray profiling of all the genes encoding P450 enzymes of the malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae in active steroidogenic organs of adults. Ovaries from non blood-fed females were compared to ovaries of blood-fed females at different times after the blood meal: 16 and 22h post-blood-meal, and to male reproductive tracts from males.
Project description:Investigation of differences in gene expression between two strains of the planarian Schmidtea mediterranea. The sexual strain are cross-fertilizing hermaphrodites with reproductive organs that develop post-embryonically and the asexual strain reproduces exclusively by transverse fission and fail to develop reproductive organs.
Project description:Sexual differentiation in vertebrates is initiated during embryogenesis and leads to the development of individuals into phenotypic males or females. The molecular pathways showing sexual dimorphic patterns have been principally investigated in the gonads. In other organs, much less is known about the gender-associated pattern of gene expression. The brain plays a coordinating role on sexual function in both genders including regulation of reproductive development and maturation through the synthesis of neuropeptide hormones and the regulation of sexual behavior in both males and females. In this study, we aimed at identifying molecular pathways regulated in a gender specific manner in breeding zebrafish in order to generate a greater understanding of the gender specific physiology of the brain. To do so, we measured the gene expression profiles of individual brains of 6 males and 5 females using a 17k oligonucleotide microarray, and interrogated the dataset for genes showing a gender-specific gene expression profile. 42 genes were found to be differentially expressed between males and females from which 18 genes were over-expressed in males and 24 genes were over-expressed in females. Keywords: gender specific gene expression in the zebrafish brain