Meeting Abstract
The ability to change sex (hermaphroditism) is a rare reproductive strategy found among teleost fishes. It has been documented in only 27 of 448 fish families. This study aims to understand the development, evolution and diversification of sex change in two species of marine fishes in the family Gobiidae, using a variety of molecular and histological techniques. We have created a developmental series for sex change in one species of goby, Lythrypnus dalli, in order to document the morphological changes that take place as a fish transitions from ova producing to sperm producing. We have also sequenced the whole transcriptome of one lobe of the gonad and brain (RNAseq) from fish as they transitioned from ova producing to sperm producing. From these data we have identified how expression levels of key genes related to sex change fluctuate over transitional time. By connecting the histological data with the genetic data, the genetic pathway(s) that lead to a change in reproductive function can be elucidated. These data will be further analyzed to construct coexpression networks, which will allow additional genes related to sex change and novel genes and splice variants to be identified. Finally, a comparison between L. dalli and a closely related species, the Hawaiian Eviota epiphanes, will be preformed to evaluate the evolution of this characteristic in multiple fish lineages. This will provide key insights into how novel features and diversity arise.
