Bioorganic Research Institute, Suntory Foundation for Life Sciences, Kyoto, Japan.
Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2022 Mar 7;13:858885. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2022.858885. eCollection 2022.
Omics studies contribute to the elucidation of genomes and profiles of gene expression. In the ascidian Type A (), mass spectrometry (MS)-based peptidomic studies have detected numerous -specific (nonhomologous) neuropeptides as well as homologs of typical vertebrate neuropeptides and hypothalamic peptide hormones. Candidates for cognate G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) for these peptides have been found in the transcriptome by two ways. First, homologous GPCRs of vertebrate counterparts have been detected by sequence homology searches of cognate transcriptomes. Second, the transcriptome-derived GPCR candidates have been used for machine learning-based systematic prediction of interactions not only between homologous peptides and GPCRs but also between novel peptides and GPCRs. These data have ultimately led to experimental evidence for various peptide-GPCR interactions. Comparative transcriptomics between the wildtype and (CiVP) gene-edited provide clues to the biological functions of CiVP in ovarian follicular development and whole body growth. Furthermore, the transcriptomes of follicles treated with peptides, such as tachykinin and cionin (a cholecystokinin homolog), have revealed key regulatory genes for follicle growth, maturation, and ovulation, eventually leading to the verification of essential and novel molecular mechanisms underlying these biological events. These findings indicate that omics studies, combined with artificial intelligence and single-cell technologies, pave the way for investigating in greater details the nervous, neuroendocrine, and endocrine systems of ascidians and the molecular and functional evolution and diversity of peptidergic regulatory networks throughout chordates.
组学研究有助于阐明基因组和基因表达谱。在 A 型尾索动物（）中，基于质谱（MS）的肽组学研究已经检测到许多 特异性（非同源）神经肽以及典型脊椎动物神经肽和下丘脑肽激素的同源物。通过两种方法在 转录组中找到了这些肽的同源 G 蛋白偶联受体（GPCR）的候选物。首先，通过同源转录组的序列同源性搜索检测到脊椎动物对应物的同源 GPCR。其次，基于转录组的 GPCR 候选物已用于基于机器学习的系统预测，不仅包括 同源肽和 GPCR 之间的相互作用，还包括新型 肽和 GPCR 之间的相互作用。这些数据最终为各种 肽-GPCR 相互作用提供了实验证据。野生型和 （CiVP）基因编辑型之间的比较转录组学提供了 CiVP 在卵巢卵泡发育和全身生长中的生物学功能的线索。此外，用肽（如 速激肽和 cionin（一种 胆囊收缩素同源物）处理的卵泡的转录组揭示了卵泡生长、成熟和排卵的关键调节基因，最终证实了这些生物学事件的基本和新颖的分子机制。这些发现表明，组学研究与人工智能和单细胞技术相结合，为更详细地研究尾索动物的神经系统、神经内分泌系统和内分泌系统以及整个脊索动物肽调节网络的分子和功能进化和多样性铺平了道路。
