Distinct Expression Patterns of Glycoprotein Hormone Subunits in the Lophotrochozoan Aplysia: Implications for the Evolution of Neuroendocrine Systems in Animals
Bibliographic record
Abstract
Glycoprotein hormones (GPHs) comprise a group of signaling molecules critical for major metabolic and reproductive functions. In vertebrates they include chorionic gonadotropin, LH, FSH, and TSH. The active hormones are characterized by heterodimerization between a common α and hormone-specific β subunit, which activate leucine-rich repeat-containing G protein coupled receptors. To date, genes referred to as GPHα2 and GPHβ5 have been the only glycoprotein hormone subunits identified in invertebrates, suggesting that other GPHα and GPHβ subunits diversified during vertebrate evolution. Still the functions of GPHα2 and GPHβ5 remain largely unknown for both vertebrates and invertebrates. To further understand the evolution and putative function of these subunits, we cloned and analyzed phylogenetically two glycoprotein subunits, AcaGPHα and AcaGPHβ, from the sea hare Aplysia californica. Model based three-dimensional predictions of AcaGPHβ confirm the presence of a complete cysteine knot, two hairpin loops, and a long loop. As in the human GPHβ5 subunit the seatbelt structure is absent in AcaGPHβ. We also found that AcaGPHα and AcaGPHβ subunits are expressed in larval stages of Aplysia, and we present a detailed expression map of the subunits in the adult central nervous system using in situ hybridizations. Both subunits are expressed in subpopulations of pleural and buccal mechanosensory neurons, suggesting a neuronal modulatory function of these subunits in Aplysia. Furthermore it supports the model of a relatively diffuse neuroendocrine-like system in molluscs, where specific primary sensory neurons release peptides extrasynaptically (paracrine secretion). This is in contrast to vertebrates and insects, in which releasing and stimulating factor from centralized sensory regions of the central nervous system ultimately regulate hormone release in peripheral glands.
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How this classification was reachedexpand
Full frame machine prediction
Teacher imitationNot calibrated prevalence, not ground truth. Human validation pending. The Gemma side is a direct model label for every work in the frame, read from the title-only record. The Codex side is a classifier learned from the 10,348 direct Codex labels and calibrated to design-weighted sample rates; fields without enough sample support carry no Codex call. Candidate is the union of the two sides; consensus is their intersection. These outputs are machine_predicted_unvalidated and are not human labels.
Distilled classifier scores by category (both heads)
| Category | Codex | Gemma |
|---|---|---|
| Metaresearch | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Meta-epidemiology (narrow) | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Meta-epidemiology (broad) | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Bibliometrics | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Science and technology studies | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Scholarly communication | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Open science | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Research integrity | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Insufficient payload (model declined to judge) | 0.000 | 0.000 |
Machine scores (provisional)
The two teacher heads of the student model, read on this work. A score orders the frame for review; it never asserts a category, and the validation status ships verbatim with every row.
Baseline scores from an immature model (maturity gate not passed, 7 training rounds). Scores rank; they never assert a category.
score_only:v0-immature-baseline · verbatim from the scoring run: score_only means the number may rank works, and no category label ships from itClassification
machine, unvalidatedMachine predicted; a candidate call from one source (direct Gemma or distilled Codex), not a consensus.
How this classification was reached, model by model and score by score, is at the end of the page under "How this classification was reached".