Expression of vitellogenin and cortical rod proteins during induced ovarian development by eyestalk ablation in the kuruma prawn, Marsupenaeus japonicus.

In penaeid shrimp species, ovarian development is characterized by the accumulation of a major yolk protein (vitellin) and the formation of cortical rods in the oocytes. The process is considered to be under the control of a neuroendocrine organ in the eyestalk (the X-organ sinus gland complex). In the present study, the synthesis of vitellogenin (VTG, precursor of vitellin) and two kinds of cortical rod proteins (cortical rod protein, CRP; thrombospondin, MjTSP) was induced by bilateral eyestalk ablation (removal of the X-organ sinus gland complex) in immature female kuruma prawn, Marsupenaeus japonicus, and the synthesis process was monitored over a 7-day period after the ablation. The ovarian weight and hemolymph VTG levels increased in the ablated females. The VTG mRNA levels in the ovary increased concomitantly with vitellin accumulation in the ovary after eyestalk ablation. On the other hand, the CRP and MjTSP protein levels in the ovary increased after eyestalk ablation, whereas the CRP and MjTSP mRNA levels in the ovary did not change concomitantly. The results suggest that the regulatory mechanism of gene expression by eyestalk hormones is different between VTG (transcriptional control) and CRP-MjTSP (translational control).