TY - JOUR T1 - In vivo RNA interference in oyster -vasa silencing inhibits germ cell development A1 - Fabioux,Caroline A1 - Corporeau,Charlotte A1 - Quillien,Virgile A1 - Favrel,Pascal A1 - Huvet,Arnaud AD - Univ Bretagne Occidentale, CNRS, UMR 6539, LEMAR,IUEM, Plouzane, France. AD - Univ Caen, IFREMER, UMR 100, Ctr Brest,PEM2, F-14032 Caen, France. AD - Univ Caen, IFREMER, UMR 100, IBFA,ICORE,PEM2,IFR 146, F-14032 Caen, France. AD - UR - https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/6641/ DO - 10.1111/j.1742-4658.2009.06982.x KW - Vasa KW - RNAi KW - Marine bivalve KW - Germline KW - Crassostrea gigas N2 - This study investigated the potential of RNA interference, which is technically challenging in bivalve mollusc species, to assess gene function in the oyster Crassostrea gigas. We designed dsRNA targeting the oyster vasa-like gene (Oyvlg), specifically expressed in oyster germ cells. In vivo injection of oyvl-dsRNA into the gonad provokes a knockdown phenotype corresponding to germ cell underproliferation and prematurely arrested meiosis througout the organ. The most severe phenotype observed is sterile. This knockdown phenotype is associated with a decrease in Oyvlg mRNA level of between 39% and 87%, and a strong reduction in OYVLG protein, to an undetectable level. Therefore, Oyvlg appears to be essential for germ cell development in Crassostrea gigas, particularly for mitotic proliferation and early meiosis. Our results demonstrate for the first time that in vivo RNA interference works efficiently in a bivalve species, opening major perspectives for functional genetic studies. Y1 - 2009/05 PB - Wiley / Blackwell JF - FEBS Journal SN - 1742-464X VL - 276 IS - 9 SP - 2566 EP - 2573 ID - 6641 ER -