Seasonal changes and endocrine regulation of pejerrey (Odontesthes bonariensis) spermatogenesis in the wild

Abstract

The endocrine mechanisms that regulate spermatogenesis and their interaction with environmental cues have been poorly studied compared with oogenesis in fish. The aim of this work was to study the spermatogenesis in pejerrey under the influence of photoperiod and water temperature fluctuation in the wild, evaluating the transcript levels of brain Gnrh variants and cyp19a1b, pituitary Gth subunits, gonadal Gth receptors, 11b-hsd, and 11-KT plasma levels. Males at spermiogenic stage were observed during spring and autumn, under a photoperiod above 11 h of light and a water temperature below 23°C. Most arrested males were observed in summer when water temperatures increased above 23°C. Males at spermatogonial stage were mainly observed in autumn, while most males at spermatocytary stage were caught in winter. An increase of gnrh-I, cyp19a1b, fshb, gpha and 11b-hsd transcripts and 11-KT plasma levels was observed during spermatogonial and/or spermatocytary stage (early spermatogenesis). The spermiogenic stage was associated to the maximum gnrh-I gene expression level and a significant increase of Gth receptors transcripts, being this fact more evident for lhcgr. During this last gonadal stage, cyp19a1b transcript level remained high, while fshb mRNA and 11-KT plasma levels showed a significant decreased compared to that occurred at the spermatocytary stage. Also, gpha and 11b-hsd gene expression levels fell during spermiation up to similar values to those observed in arrested males. A significant correlation between 11-KT and gnrh-I, cyp19a1b, gpha, fshb, 11b-hsd transcripts, and the number of spermatocytes was observed during spermatogenesis. All these findings suggested that in pejerrey, the spermatocyte proliferation occurs mainly during winter under the stimulation of 11-KT induced by FSH through the stimulation of specific enzymes, including the 11b-hsd while spermiation occurs after photoperiod increase and with temperatures of the water below 23°C, through the stimulation of gnrh-I, cyp19a1b and lhcgr.