Collaborative Research: Kisspeptin Regulation of Reproductive Physiology of a Coral Reef Fish

尽管经过了几十年的研究，关于环境因素如何控制脊椎动物生殖系统的主要问题仍然存在。从鱼类到人类，激活生殖系统的关键生化“看门人”包括两种重要的蛋白质激素，促性腺激素释放激素和kisspeptin，它们在大脑中起作用。这个项目将研究社会线索如何影响动物模型系统大脑中的这些激素，这些激素在揭示社会环境和生殖系统之间的联系方面特别强大。这个动物模型是蓝头濑鱼（Thalassoma bifasciatum），一种已经成为许多环境对生殖功能影响的基础研究的主题的鱼类。本项目将使用分子神经生物学方法绘制蓝头濑鱼大脑中促性腺激素释放激素和kisspeptin信号系统，以比较这些激素在不同繁殖阶段的表达，并测试控制这些激素对生殖功能的影响。该项目的一个关键要素是为北卡罗来纳州立大学和佛罗里达州印第安河州立学院的本科生提供行为领域研究和分子生物学实验室研究的经验。第二个好处是增加了对鱼类繁殖控制的理解，因为蓝头濑鱼是一种特别有用的动物，有助于理解这种控制的具体机制。这方面的知识对水产养殖业很有价值，因为繁殖控制是人工养殖鱼类繁殖的一个关键障碍。最后，该项目将与卓越海洋科学教育中心合作，开发以佛罗里达海洋环境为重点的教育材料。基因序列将在基因库中存档，cdna将以运输成本为基础提供给感兴趣的各方。

Despite decades of research, major questions remain about how environmental cues control the vertebrate reproductive system. The list of key biochemical "gatekeepers" for activation of the reproductive system from fishes to humans includes two important protein hormones, Gonadotropin-releasing hormone and kisspeptin, that function in the brain. This project would investigate how social cues affect these hormones in the brain of an animal model system that is particularly powerful for revealing connections between the social environment and the reproductive system. This animal model is the bluehead wrasse (Thalassoma bifasciatum), a fish species that has been the subject of many foundational studies of environmental influences on reproductive function. This project will use molecular neurobiology methods to map the gonadotropin-releasing hormone and kisspeptin signaling systems in the brain of the bluehead wrasse, in order to compare the expression of these hormones across different reproductive phases, and to test the effects of manipulating these hormones on reproductive function. A key element of the project is to provide undergraduates from North Carolina State University and Indian River State College in Florida with experience in behavioral field studies and molecular biological laboratory studies. A second benefit will be an increased understanding of the control of reproduction in fishes because the bluehead wrasse is a particularly useful animal for understanding the specific mechanisms of this control. This knowledge is valuable to the aquaculture industry because the control of reproduction represents a key barrier to the propagation of fishes in captivity. Finally, this project will lead to the development of educational materials focused on Florida marine environments in collaboration with the Center for Ocean Science Education Excellence. Gene sequences will be archived in Genbank and cDNAs will be provided to interested parties on a cost-of-transport basis.