Molecular Markers of Ovarian Germ Cells of Banana Prawn (<i>Fenneropenaeus merguiensis</i>)

The banana prawn (<i>Fenneropenaeus merguiensis</i>) is a valuable prawn in the worldwide market. However, cultivation of this species is limited owing to the difficulty in culture management and limited knowledge of reproduction. Therefore, we studied the gene expression and molecular mechanisms involved in oogenesis for elucidating ovarian germ cell development in banana prawns. The tissue-specific distribution of certain genes identified from previous transcriptome data showed that <i>FmCyclinB</i>, <i>FmNanos</i>, and nuclear autoantigenic sperm protein (<i>FmNASP</i>) were only expressed in gonads. The in situ hybridization (ISH) of these three genes showed different expression patterns throughout oogenesis. <i>FmCyclinB</i> was highly expressed in pre-vitellogenic oocytes. <i>FmNanos</i> was expressed at almost the same level during oogenesis but showed the most expression in late pre-vitellogenic stages. Based on the highest expression of <i>FmCyclinB</i> and <i>FmNanos</i> in mid pre-vitellogenic and late pre-vitellogenic oocytes, respectively, we suggested that FmNanos may suppress FmCyclinB expression before initiation of vitellogenesis. Meanwhile, <i>FmNASP</i> expression was detected only in pre-vitellogenesis. Moreover, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis of <i>FmNASP</i> expression was supported by F<i>mNASP</i> ISH analysis based on high expression of <i>FmNASP</i> in sub-adult ovaries, which contain most of pre-vitellogenic oocytes. In this study, we found three reliable ovarian markers for banana prawns and also found a dynamic change of molecular mechanism during the sub-stage of pre-vitellogenesis. We determined the expression levels of these genes involved in oogenesis. Our findings provide information for further studies on banana prawn reproduction which may assist in their cultivation.