Expression profiles of amhy and major sex-related genes during gonadal sex differentiation and their relation with genotypic and temperature-dependent sex determination in pejerrey Odontesthes bonariensis.

To shed light on the mechanisms of and interactions of GSD and TSD in pejerrey, we investigated how the transcriptional profiles of amhy and amha are affected by feminizing (17 °C) and masculinizing (29 °C) temperatures during the critical period of sex determination/differentiation and their relation with the expression profiles of AMH receptor type II (amhrII), gonadal aromatase (cyp19a1a), and 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 2 (hsd11b2). Careful consideration of the results of this study and all information currently available for this species, including similar analyzes for an intermediate, mixed-sex promoting temperature (25 °C), suggests a model for genotypic/temperature-dependent sex determination and gonadal sex differentiation that involves a) cyp19a1a-dependent, developmentally-programmed ovarian development as the default state that becomes self-sustaining in the absence of a potent and timely masculinizing stimulus, b) early, developmentally-programmed amhy expression and high temperature as masculinization signals that antagonize the putative female pathway by suppressing cyp19a1a expression, c) increasing stress response, cortisol, and the synthesis of the masculinizing androgen 11-keto-testosterone via hsd11b2 with increasing temperature that is important for masculinization in both genotypes but particularly so in XX individuals, and d) an endocrine network with positive/negative feedback mechanisms that ensure fidelity of the male/female pathway once started. The proposed model, albeit tentative and non-all inclusive, accounts for the continuum of responses, from all-females at low temperatures to all-males at high temperatures and for the balanced-, genotype-linked sex ratios obtained at intermediate temperatures, and therefore supports the coexistence of TSD and GSD in pejerrey across the range of viable temperatures for this species.