Characterization of a pituitary GnRH-receptor from a perciform fish, Morone saxatilis: functional expression in a...

Gonadotropin-releasing hormones (GnRHs) bind to the specific receptor present on the gonadotrophs to activate the synthesis and release of gonadotropins (follicle stimulating hormone or FSH and luteinizing hormone or LH), which in turn control gonadal maturation, gametogenesis and gamete release. Perciform species have three endogenous GnRHs. The main objective of this study was to characterize the gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor (GnRH-R) present in the pituitary of a perciform species, striped bass (Morone saxatilis) and demonstrate how it interacts with its potential ligand. In this study, a cDNA for GnRH-R from the pituitaries of striped bass was cloned. The cloned cDNA has an open reading frame (ORF) that codes for a 419 amino acids peptide. Like other G-protein coupled receptors including the non-mammalian GnRH-Rs, the peptide has seven putative transmembrane domains and a C-terminal tail. Comparative analysis of the amino acid sequence of striped bass (stb) GnRH-R shows 38-87% similarity with the known GnRH-Rs. A Northern blot analysis revealed a single GnRH-R transcript in the pituitary; however, its expression in various extrapituitary tissues was demonstrated by a reverse-transcription-PCR (RT-PCR). Functionally, upon induction by endogenous forms of GnRHs (seabream, chicken II and salmon GnRHs) and a mammalian GnRH-agonist, the recombinant stbGnRH-R mediated a reporter gene (luciferase) activity in a fish cell line (CHSE-214). A real-time relative quantitation method established that significantly higher (P<0.05) levels of stbGnRH-R mRNA were present in the pituitaries of striped bass with advanced stages of ovarian development, compared to the pituitaries of fish with less developed ovaries.