RNA-seq of larval stages around molting and metamorphosis

P. ornatus larvae were cultured from wild-caught broodstock at IMAS, under proprietary culture conditions. Approximately 500 stage 9 and 10 phyllosoma were transferred from a mass rearing tank and distributed between two 110 L Kriesel tanks with flow-through open circulation. Larvae were sampled for RNA-extraction at 12 defined points throughout development. Phyllosoma were harvested at 4 days post-molt in stages 10.1, 10.2, 11.1 and 11.2 (where n.x denotes stage n instar x) - the latter of which culminates in metamorphosis. In this final stage, additional samples were taken at 6 and 8 days post-molt, and at approximately 10 days when the onset of gut-retraction was visible. Further samples were taken from the post-molt, H-phase and pigmented puerulus and then in the juvenile phase at 0 and 4 days post-molt. RNA was extracted from whole larvae (n=3) for sequencing.