Overexpression of Kdm6b induces testicular differentiation in a temperature-dependent sex determination system  

作　　者：Qiran Chen Wei Sun Lin Jin Yingjie Zhou Fang Li Chutian Ge 

机构地区：[1]College of Biological and Environmental Sciences,Zhejiang Wanli University,Ningbo,Zhejiang 315100,China [2]Institute of Animal Sex and Development,Zhejiang Wanli University,Ningbo,Zhejiang 315100,China

出　　处：《Zoological Research》2024年第5期1108-1115,共8页动物学研究（英文）

基　　金：supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(32325049,U22A20529,32303000);Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation(LQ24C190009);Ningbo Natural Science Foundation(2022J192);Zhejiang Provincial Top Key Discipline of Biological Engineering(1741000592)。

摘　　要：In reptiles,such as the red-eared slider turtle(Trachemys scripta elegans),gonadal sex determination is highly dependent on the environmental temperature during embryonic stages.This complex process,which leads to differentiation into either testes or ovaries,is governed by the finely tuned expression of upstream genes,notably the testis-promoting gene Dmrt1 and the ovary-promoting gene Foxl2.Recent studies have identified epigenetic regulation as a crucial factor in testis development,with the H3K27me3 demethylase KDM6B being essential for Dmrt1 expression in T.s.elegans.However,whether KDM6B alone can induce testicular differentiation remains unclear.In this study,we found that overexpression of Kdm6b in T.s.elegans embryos induced the male development pathway,accompanied by a rapid increase in the gonadal expression of Dmrt1 at 31°C,a temperature typically resulting in female development.Notably,this sex reversal could be entirely rescued by Dmrt1 knockdown.These findings demonstrate that Kdm6b is sufficient for commitment to the male pathway,underscoring its role as a critical epigenetic regulator in the sex determination of the red-eared slider turtle.

关 键 词：Temperature-dependent sex determination Sex reversal Kdm6b DMRT1 T.s.elegans 

分 类 号：Q954.4[生物学—动物学]