Ahi Ehsan Pashay, Verta Jukka-Pekka, Kurko Johanna, Ruokolainen Annukka, Singh Pooja, Debes Paul Vincent, Erkinaro Jaakko, Primmer Craig R
Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Viikinkaari 9, Helsinki, 00014, Finland.
Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture, Nord University, Bodø, Norway.
BMC Ecol Evol. 2025 May 26;25(1):53. doi: 10.1186/s12862-025-02398-4.
Pubertal timing is a key life history trait, shaped by ecological pressures to balance reproductive success and survival. Emerging evidence suggests a link between adiposity and early maturation, potentially through hormonal signaling pathways governing puberty timing. The timing of sexual maturation in Atlantic salmon has a strong genetic basis in addition to being linked with environmental shifts and lipid reserves. A gene encoding a co-factor of the Hippo pathway, vgll3, is a major determinant of maturation timing in salmon. The Hippo pathway is known for its evolutionary conserved molecular signal role in both sexual maturation and adipogenesis.
In this study, we tested the expression of Hippo pathway genes in the brain of immature and mature male Atlantic salmon carrying either the early or the late maturation genotype of vgll3. We found increased brain expression of a major Hippo pathway kinase (lats1b) in individuals with early maturation genotypes of vgll3 before maturation development of testes was evident. Moreover, we found components and regulating partners of the Hippo pathway showing differential expression in brain of individuals with early and late vgll3 genotypes prior to maturation. This may suggest a role for the Hippo pathway in central nervous system processes that regulate the preparation for maturation.
This study characterizes transcriptional changes in components of the Hippo pathway in the brain in relation to vgll3-mediated early maturation in Atlantic salmon, highlighting the potential involvement of this pathway in the central regulation of maturation prior to gonadal development.
青春期时机是一项关键的生活史特征，受到平衡生殖成功与生存的生态压力的塑造。新出现的证据表明，肥胖与早熟之间存在联系，可能是通过控制青春期时机的激素信号通路。大西洋鲑鱼的性成熟时机除了与环境变化和脂质储备有关外，还具有很强的遗传基础。一种编码Hippo通路辅助因子的基因vgll3是鲑鱼成熟时机的主要决定因素。Hippo通路因其在性成熟和脂肪生成中具有进化保守的分子信号作用而闻名。
在本研究中，我们检测了携带vgll3早熟或晚熟基因型的未成熟和成熟雄性大西洋鲑鱼大脑中Hippo通路基因的表达。我们发现，在睾丸成熟发育明显之前，vgll3早熟基因型个体中一种主要的Hippo通路激酶（lats1b）的大脑表达增加。此外，我们发现Hippo通路的组成成分和调节伙伴在成熟前vgll3基因型早、晚的个体大脑中表现出差异表达。这可能表明Hippo通路在调节成熟准备的中枢神经系统过程中发挥作用。
本研究描述了大西洋鲑鱼大脑中Hippo通路成分与vgll3介导的早熟相关的转录变化，突出了该通路在性腺发育之前成熟的中枢调节中的潜在作用。
