Conservation and divergence in the frog immunome: pyrosequencing and de novo assembly of immune tissue transcriptomes

Conservation Genetics and Genomics of Amphibians and Reptiles

“…Recent analyses of transcriptome data from two anuran species, one tropical and one temperate, demonstrated that transcripts of both the innate and acquired immune system were expressed in multiple tissues and were highly expressed, suggesting that such targeted analyses of immune system transcripts should help identify individuals and populations that have been exposed to, and survived, Bd and other diseases (143). Such information may be critical for identifying high-priority populations for conservation and as sources for reintroductions.…”

Amphibian molecular ecology and how it has informed conservation

“…Open shrub habitat and river crossings facilitate migration between populations, while elevation differences decrease gene flow Johansson et al (2005) Common frog (Rana temporaria) 7 microsats Agricultural fragmentation has markedly different impacts on the species in different parts of its range Funk et al (2005) Columbia spotted frog (R. luteiventris) 6 microsats There is a high degree of gene flow among low-elevation populations, and elevation changes serve as barriers to gene flow have recently been sequenced and assembled, including members of three salamander families [Hynobius chinensis (Che et al 2014), A. mexicanum , Notophthalmus viridescens (Looso et al 2013)] and three anuran families [X. tropicalis (Hellsten et al 2010;Tan et al 2013), X. laevis (Morin et al 2006), Pseudacris regilla/Rana (Lithobates) clamitans (Robertson & Cornman 2014), Rana chensinensis/Rana kukunoris (Yang et al 2012), Rana muscosa/Rana sierrae (Rosenblum et al 2012), Odorrana margaretae (Qiao et al 2013), Espadarana prosoblepon/Rana (Lithobates) yavapaiensis (Savage et al 2014)]. Several of these taxa are endangered in the wild, and the availability of these transcriptome resources will allow researchers to design target-capture arrays using DNA sequence data for a large variety of amphibian species.…”

“…They found surprisingly little evidence of an immune response in infected frogs-a shared pattern among susceptible species. Savage et al (2014) later characterized the transcriptomes of two frogs to compare rates of evolution across different immune-associated genes. They found that these genes did not generally have a higher rate of functional evolution, with the exception of lysozyme-encoding glycosyl proteases, a key component of an organism's first response against fungal and bacterial pathogens (Savage et al 2014).…”

“…Savage et al (2014) later characterized the transcriptomes of two frogs to compare rates of evolution across different immune-associated genes. They found that these genes did not generally have a higher rate of functional evolution, with the exception of lysozyme-encoding glycosyl proteases, a key component of an organism's first response against fungal and bacterial pathogens (Savage et al 2014). In addition to studying the cellular responses of amphibians to Bd infection, gene activity of Bd itself has also been characterized in an attempt to better understand how the fungus behaves in different stages of its life cycle (Rosenblum et al 2008).…”

Transcriptome analysis revealed positive selection of immune-related genes in tilapia

“…Several studies showed that in mammalians, MHC genes are dynamic and natural selected in the adaptive immune system to confer protection against pathogens [7,8]. By using pyrosequencing technology, Savage and colleagues demonstrated that high-speed evolution of lysozyme genes in frogs [9]. In teleosts, the evolution of immune genes is more complicated because most fishes are polyploidy species.…”