Investigating the underlying mechanisms of mercury and pCO2 neurotoxicity in one-month-old juvenile cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) using transcriptomic approach.

Cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) juveniles were exposed to dietary MeHg and elevated pCO2 during their first living month. Behavioral analyses revealed an increase of the locomotor activity, an alteration of defensive behavior as well as a disruption of behavioral lateralization. Thus, we decided to study the transcriptome from the head of those individuals using RNA-sequencing technologie in order to investigate molecular mechanisms potentially underlying the neurotoxicity of MeHg and pCO2.

普通乌贼（Sepia officinalis）幼体在其出生后的首个自然月内，暴露于膳食甲基汞（MeHg）与升高的二氧化碳分压（pCO2）环境中。行为学分析结果显示，该幼体的运动活性显著提升，防御行为出现异常改变，同时行为侧化（behavioral lateralization）遭到破坏。鉴于此，本研究采用RNA测序（RNA-sequencing）技术对这些实验个体的头部组织开展转录组分析，以探究甲基汞与升高的二氧化碳分压诱发神经毒性的潜在分子机制。