Expression of TRx, LvP38, CAT, and POD Gene of Litopenaeus vannamei Response to WSSV Infection

Abstract:

In order to understand the change in the expression of genes associated with the oxidation and the signaling pathway, we infected the shrimp with the white spot syndrome virus, then we used quantitative real-time PCR to analyze the mRNA expression of thioredoxin (TRx), Litopenaeus vannamei p38 (LvP38), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POD) genes in the lymph nodes and gill of the shrimp at different time points after the infection (0, 6, 12, 24, 48 and 72 h). The shrimps were divided into two groups (the WSSV-injected group and the PBS-injected group), and we collected 3 shrimps from each group at 0, 6, 12, 24, 48, and 72 h after the injection, and isolated individual samples of the lymph nodes and gills. After the extraction of the total RNA, we synthesized and quantified the first-strand cDNAs with a kit and NanoDrop 3000 respectively, and performed quantitative real-time PCR using Rotor Gene 3000. The results showed that in the WSSV-injected group, the expression levels of TRx, LvP38, CAT, and POD in lymph nodes reached the maximum at 72 h post infection, and there was no significant difference between the WSSV-injected group and the PBS-injected group during the period of 6−48 h. The expression level in the gill of the WSSV-injected group was the highest at 12 h post infection, and then decreased over time. Significant differences in TRx mRNA expression were observed at 48 h and 72 h, and there was a significant difference in CAT mRNA expression at 48 h between the WSSV-injected group and the PBS-injected group. Our data indicated that TRx, LvP38, CAT, and POD might be correlated with the WSSV infection.