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Molecular Characterisation of Wnt4 and Wnt16 in the Water Flea (Daphnia pulex) and Their Expression Regulation by Polystyrene Nanoplastics
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Researchers cloned and characterized the Wnt4 and Wnt16 genes from the water flea Daphnia pulex and studied their expression in response to environmental stressors including microplastics. Wnt signaling pathways regulate development and immune function, and their disruption by microplastic exposure could affect Daphnia reproduction and survival. The study contributes to molecular understanding of how microplastics affect the biology of a key aquatic model organism.
The Wnt gene family is of ancient origin and is involved in various biological processes. In this study, Wnt4 and Wnt16 were cloned from Daphnia pulex, named DpWnt4 and DpWnt16, respectively. In DpWnt4 cDNA, full-length 1684 bp, the open reading frame was 1122 bp and it encodes a 373 amino acid polypeptide. In DpWnt16 cDNA, full-length 1941 bp, the open reading frame was 1293 bp and it encodes a 430 amino acid polypeptide. The sequence analysis result showed that both DpWnt4 and DpWnt16 sequences contain a Wnt1 domain. Multiple sequence alignment and phylogenetic analysis revealed that DpWnt4 and DpWnt16 were most closely related to arthropods. The expression of DpWnt4 decreased at 0.5 mg/L group and was induced at 2 mg/L, while DpWnt16 was only induced at 2 mg/L nanoplastics group. These results help us understand more about the character of Wnt4 and Wnt16 in crustaceans and how Wnt genes respond to pollutants, especially nanoplastics.
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