Searching sex-linked markers in the early-differentiated XY-system of Hoplias malabaricus: A novel approach for understanding the evolution of sex chromosomes

• Grant number: 24/03469-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: August 01, 2024
• End date: October 31, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Genetics - Animal Genetics
• Principal Investigator: Marcelo de Bello Cioffi
• Grantee: Mariannah Pravatti Barcellos de Oliveira
• Supervisor: Tariq Ezaz
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde (CCBS). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of Canberra (UC), Australia
• Associated to the scholarship: 23/07699-1 - Satellite DNAs and the differentiation of sex chromosomes in vertebrates. Part II. The nascent XX/XY sex chromosome system of Hoplias malabaricus (Characiformes, Erythrinidae) as a model, BP.IC

Abstract

The student has been an undergraduate research fellow in our laboratory since 01/01/2022. In her first IC project, integrative analyses involving cytogenetics, genomics, and bioinformatics techniques in several Triportheus fish species were carried out, with a special focus on the evolution of their ZW sex chromosome system. As a result of these analyses, the article entitled "Following the Pathway of W Chromosome Differentiation in Triportheus (Teleostei: Characiformes)" was generated and published in the journal "Biology" (IF 4.2), where the student was the first author. Now, in her current IC project, the focus is to apply the same integrative analysis to deeply explore the differentiation of the undifferentiated XX/XY sex system present in the karyomorph F of the fish Hoplias malabaricus. Due to the excellent progress of the project, we aim to now expand the analysis by applying genotyping by sequencing analyses to identify putative sex-linked markers. The analysis will be performed in the laboratory of Prof. Dr. Tariq Ezaz (University of Canberra, Australia), a world-renowned specialist in the evolution of vertebrate sex chromosomes. This approach represents a unique method for studying sex chromosome evolution in fishes and expects to provide fresh evidence for the "fountain of youth" theory about the maintenance of homomorphic sex chromosomes. In addition, besides the expected scientific advances, this proposal will provide a unique opportunity for the scientific training of the student, by interacting with a renowned group of Australian researchers and learning new study methodologies currently employed in Dr. Ezaz laboratory.