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Molecular cloning and expression of novel metallothionein (MT) gene in the polychaete Perinereis nuntia exposed to metals

  • 15th International Symposium on Toxicity Assessment
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Abstract

To report a novel metallothionein (MT) gene and evaluate its potency as a biomarker, we clone this MT gene and measured the expression levels in the metal-exposed polychaete Perinereis nuntia. Accumulated metal contents and metallothionein-like proteins (MTLPs), which have been recognized as potential biomarkers, were compared with the relative mRNA expressions of the MT gene of P. nuntia (Pn-MT). In addition, the metal-binding affinity was estimated by recombinant Pn-MT protein. Pn-MT having high cysteine residues with three metal response elements in the promoter region closely clusters with those of other invertebrates. The accumulation patterns of metals were dependent on the exposure times in lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and copper (Cu) exposure. Particularly, both MTLP levels and relative mRNA expressions of MT were increased with accumulated metal contents and exposure time in P. nuntia exposed to Pb and Cd. There was no significant modulation of the Pn-MT gene in polychaetes exposed to Zn and As. However, the metal-binding ability of the recombinant Pn-MT protein provides a clear evidence for a high affinity of MT to several metal elements. These results suggest that Pn-MT would play an important role in the detoxification and/or sequestration of specific metals (e.g., Pb and Cd) in P. nuntia and have potential as a molecular biomarker in the monitoring of the marine environment using a polychaete.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Hans-U. Dahms for his comments on the manuscript. This work was supported by a grant from MOMAF (2010) funded to Jae-Seong Lee.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, College of Natural Sciences, Hanyang University, Seoul, 133-791, South Korea

    Eun-Ji Won & Jae-Seong Lee

  2. Department of Molecular and Environmental Bioscience, Graduate School, Hanyang University, Seoul, 133-791, South Korea

    Jae-Sung Rhee

  3. Department of Environmental Marine Sciences, College of Science and Technology, Hanyang University, Ansan, 426-791, South Korea

    Eun-Ji Won & Kyung-Hoon Shin

  4. Marine Environments and Conservation Research Department, Korea Ocean Research& Development Institute, Ansan, 426-744, South Korea

    Kongtae Ra & Kyung-Tae Kim

  5. State Key Laboratory in Marine Pollution, Department of Biology and Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China

    Doris W. T. Au

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  1. Eun-Ji Won
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Correspondence to Kyung-Hoon Shin or Jae-Seong Lee.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Suppl. Fig. 1

Nucleotides and deduced amino acid sequences of P. nuntia MT. Signal peptides in bold (PDF 47 kb)

Suppl. Fig. 2

Linear relationship between accumulated metal contents and MTLP levels and relative mRNA of Pn-MT in P. nuntia exposed to a. Cd; b. Pb (Pearson′s correlations) (PDF 72 kb)

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Won, EJ., Rhee, JS., Ra, K. et al. Molecular cloning and expression of novel metallothionein (MT) gene in the polychaete Perinereis nuntia exposed to metals. Environ Sci Pollut Res 19, 2606–2618 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-012-0905-1

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