Development of a yellow perch microarray for the detection of metal stress

细胞蛋白质具有大量的基本功能。蛋白质功能的实例包括酶、膜转运蛋白和通道、细胞内配体和激素受体。生物体从以DNA形式存储的基因中记录的遗传密码产生蛋白质，这些遗传密码转录成信使RNA（mRNA），然后翻译成蛋白质。细胞中特定mRNA的存在表明细胞或生物体需要它们编码的蛋白质。生态毒理基因组学是研究野生生物对污染物暴露的基因表达变化的研究。本研究将探讨野生黄鲈暴露于金属混合物在该领域的基因表达模式的变化。为此，我们将创建一个cDNA微阵列，由一个载玻片组成，在载玻片上将点样超过1000个基因序列，并允许同时测量载玻片上所有基因的表达水平。黄鲈是加拿大主要金属采矿和冶炼区附近最常见的野生鱼类，因此是与金属生态毒理基因组学最相关的鱼类。将从萨德伯里ON和Rouyn-Noranda QC收集黄鲈鱼，沿着金属污染梯度。在Rouyn-Noranda，来自干净湖泊的鱼也将被关在受污染的湖泊中，反之亦然。最后，黄鲈也将在实验室中暴露于单一金属和自然应激源（温度，缺氧，食物配给变化），以将基本的生理和行为反应与基因表达谱联系起来。结合起来，这些研究将使我们能够识别金属特异性基因表达特征。微阵列将进行测试的目的是开发一种工具，在污染的水生环境中的金属的环境影响监测。这项研究的结果将提高我们监测和减轻加拿大金属工业对环境影响的能力。

Cell proteins serve a vast number of essential functions. Examples of protein functions include enzymes, membrane transporters and channels, intracellular ligands and hormone receptors. Living organisms produce proteins from genetic codes recorded in genes stored as DNA, which are transcribed into messenger RNA (mRNA) and then translated into proteins. The presence of specific mRNA in cells indicates a cellular or organismal need for the proteins for which they encode. Ecotoxicogenomics is the study of changes in gene expression in response to contaminant exposure in wild organisms. This study will examine changes in gene expression patterns in wild yellow perch exposed to metal mixtures in the field. To this end, we will create a cDNA microarray, consisting of a glass slide on which over 1000 gene sequences will be spotted, and which will allow the simultaneous measurement of the level of expression of all genes present on the slide. Yellow perch is the most common species of wild fish around major metal mining and smelting areas in Canada and therefore the most relevant fish for metals ecotoxicogenomics. Yellow perch will be collected from Sudbury ON and Rouyn-Noranda QC, along metal contamination gradients. In Rouyn-Noranda, fish from a clean lake will also be caged in a contaminated lake and vice-versa. Finally, yellow perch will also be exposed in the laboratory to single metals and to natural stressors (temperature, hypoxia, food ration variations) in order to link basic physiological and behavioural responses to gene expression profiles. Combined, these studies will allow us to identify metal-specific gene expression signatures. The microarray will be tested with the objective to develop a tool for Environmental Effects Monitoring of metals in contaminated aquatic environments. The results of this study will improve our capacity to monitor and mitigate the environmental impacts of the metals industry in Canada.