Sequence analysis and expression differentiation of chemokine receptor CXCR4b among three populations of Megalobrama amblycephala

Chemokine (G-X-C motif), receptor 4 (CXCR4), a member of the family of seven transmembrane G-protein-coupled receptors, plays important roles in immunomodulation, organogenesis, hematopoiesis, and derailed cerebellar neuron migration. We characterized the sequences and expression profiles of CXCR4b in Megalobrama amblycephala. The full-length cDNA was 1638 bp, encoding 353 amino acid residues. Multiple alignment and phylogenetic analysis indicated that M. amblycephala CXCR4b contained the similar conservative sequences and motifs with other organisms. The CXCR4b expression in different development stages of M. amblycephala showed the mRNA levels before hatching and at 62 h post fertilization (hpf) were significantly higher than at other post hatching stages (P < 0.05). Besides, CXCR4b was constitutively expressed in a wide range of tissues, at higher levels in headkidney, liver, intestine spleen, blood and gill, where a larger number of immune cells including lymphocytes and macrophages reside, suggesting its specific roles in inflammatory responses. The CXCR4b expression after high nitrite concentration (rho NO2--N: 20.29 mg/L) exposure supported a potential pro-inflammatory function for CXCR4b. In order to identify the better population with immune property for breeding, we compared the tissue expression of CXCR4b among Liangzi Lake population (L), Yuni Lake population (Y) and Poyang Lake population (P), it was indicated that the expression levels in the population Y were obviously higher than that of the other two populations. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.