Research results that octopuses adapt to changes in water temperature by rewriting their RNA
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Octopuses are cold- blooded animals that do not have the ability to regulate body temperature. Therefore, the octopus brain is in constant danger from changes in water temperature. However, octopuseswith extremely high intelligence have the ability to rewrite the RNA of nerve cells on the spot in response to changes in water temperature. As a result, research results that octopuses respond to high and low water temperatures were shown by a research team led by Joshua Rosenthal of the University of Chicago Institute of Marine Biology.
Temperature-dependent RNA editing in octopus extensively recodes the neural proteome: Cell
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2023.05.004
Octopuses Can Rewire Their 'Brains' by Editing Their Own RNA on The Fly : ScienceAlert
Octopuses rewire their brains to adapt to sea | EurekAlert!
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/991042
A ` `mutation '' that changes the traits and properties of an organism occurs when a change occurs in DNA. Mutations are irreversible changes that can persist for generations, while RNA rewriting is a temporary means by which individuals adapt to environmental changes. In general, RNA rewriting is performed in many plants, but it is considered to be a rare behavior in animals other than cephalopods such as octopus and squid.
``By rewriting RNA, organisms can express diverse proteins anytime and anywhere,'' Rosenthal said. ``The rewriting of RNA by cephalopods is a means of adapting to environmental changes It has not been clarified until now,' he said. Therefore, the research team investigated whether octopuses rewrite RNA to adapt to changes in water temperature, and whether rewriting RNA affects the function of proteins in the octopus brain. According to Rosenthal et al., wild octopuses are exposed to both rapid changes in water temperature when moving to various depths and gradual changes in water temperature such as the change of season.
To determine whether the rewriting of RNA is related to changes in water temperature, the researchers captured wild California two-spot octopuses and placed them in a 22°C tank to simulate a warm ocean and a cold ocean. They were divided into water tanks at ℃ and allowed to acclimatize. A few weeks later, the RNA from each octopus was compared to its DNA, revealing evidence of RNA editing at more than 60,000 known editing sites.
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Ellie Eisenberg of Tel Aviv University said, 'Of the approximately 60,000 editing sites surveyed this time, over 20,000, or about one-third, rewrite RNA to adapt to water temperature. It was observed.' reported. ``The rewritten RNA was often associated with the nervous system, and the cold-sea octopuses rewrote the RNA more frequently,'' he said.
Next, the research team investigated the timing of octopus RNA rewriting. In the experiment, juvenile octopus was used, and the water temperature was raised from 14°C to 24°C in 0.5°C increments over a period of about 20 hours. At the same time, we are also conducting an experiment in which the water temperature is lowered by 0.5°C from 24°C to 14°C. At that time, the extent of RNA rewriting was measured before the water temperature change, immediately after the water temperature change, and 4 days later. As a result of the experiment, it was observed that a large change in RNA occurred within 1 day after the completion of the change in water temperature, and after 4 days, the change to a new RNA state that continued even after that was completed. It became clear that ``Until now, we had no idea whether octopus RNA rewriting occurred within weeks or hours,'' said Matthew Burke of St. Francis University.
Next, the research team focused on two proteins, kinesin and synaptotagmin , which are important for the function of the nervous system, in order to investigate whether the rewriting of octopus RNA affects the structure and function of proteins. compared. As a result, it was confirmed that RNA rewriting in both octopuses exposed to warm and cold environments caused changes in the structures of these proteins and affected their functions. rice field.
by Martinus Scriblerus
In addition, adaptation to water temperature changes by rewriting RNA was observed not only in the California two-spot octopus investigated this time, but also in the closely related species Veril two-spot octopus. We speculate that octopus and squid also rewrite RNA to adapt to temperature.
However, there are many unknown points about how octopuses control this RNA rewriting and why RNA is rewritten more frequently as the water temperature is lower. In the future, the research team plans to answer these questions and investigate whether octopuses and other cephalopods rewrite RNA in response to aquatic environments such as hypoxia and water pollution. increase.
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