Abstract
In male three-spined sticklebacks, Gasterosteus aculeatus, the kidney hypertrophies during the breeding season and produces a glue which is used in nest-building. This hypertrophy is androgen dependent with 11-ketotestosterone (11 KT) being most effective. The aim of the present study was to characterize the protein composition of this glue. Threads of glue were collected from stickleback nests and glue material was sampled from the content of urinary bladders of male sticklebacks in breeding condition. The samples were investigated using sodium dodecyl sulphate- polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). One major glycoprotein dominated in both the nest-threads and urinary bladder samples. The identified glycoprotein had a molecular mass of approximately 203 kDa. After deglycosylation the molecular mass was approximately 200 kDa. The amino acid composition of the protein from urinary bladder content was almost identical to the amino acid composition of the protein from the nest-threads. The protein had a relatively high content of cysteine (7.6–8.0%). The glycoprotein was named spiggin. Spiggin was absent in the urinary bladder of untreated castrated fish, but spiggin was present in sham- operated fish and in castrated fish treated with 11 KT. These results demonstrate that spiggin is induced by 11 KT. Spiggin is so far the only protein known to be induced by 11KT and based on the present findings we suggest that spiggin represents a novel structural protein.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bendahmane, M. and Abou-Haila, A. 1994. Synthesis, characterization and hormonal regulation of epididymal proteins during postnatal development of the mouse. Differentiation 55: 119–125.
Borg, B. 1987. Stimulation of reproductive behaviour by aromatizable and non-aromatizable androgens in the male three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus L. In Proc.5th Congr. Eur. Ichthyol. Stockholm. Pp. 269–271 Edited by Kullander S. O. K and Fernholm B. Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm.
Borg, B. 1994. Androgens in teleost fishes. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 109C: 219–245.
Borg, B. and Mayer, I. 1995. Androgens and behaviour in the threespined stickleback.Behaviour 132: 1025–1035.
Borg, B., Antonopoulou, E., Andersson, E., Carlberg, T. and Mayer, I. 1993. Effectiveness of several androgens in stimulating kidney hypertrophy, a secondary sexual character, in castrated male three-spined sticklebacks, Gasterosteus aculeatus. Can. J. Zool. 71: 2327–2329.
Catz, D. S., Fischer, L. M. and Kelley, D. B. 1995. Androgen regulation of a laryngeal-specific myosin heavy chain mRNA isoform whose expression is sexually differentiated. Dev. Biol. 171: 448–457.
De, P. K. 1996. Sex-hormonal regulation of 20.5 and 24 kDa major male-specific proteins in Syrian hamster submandibular gland. Steroid. Biochem. Mol. Biol. 58: 183–187.
de Ruiter, A. J. H. and Mein, C. G. 1982. Testosterone-dependent transformation of nephronic tubule cells into serous and mucuos gland cells in stickleback kidneys in vivo and in vitro. Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 47: 70–83.
Hyllner, S. J., Oppen-Berntsen, D. O., Helvik, J. V., Walther, B. T. and Haux, C. 1991. Oestradiol-17β induces the major vitelline envelope proteins in both sexes in teleosts. J. Endocrinol. 131: 229–236.
Hyllner, S. J., Fernández-Palacios Barber H., Larsson D. G. J. And Haux C. 1995. Amino acid composition and endocrine control of vitelline envelope proteins in European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) and gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata). Mol. Reprod. Dev. 41: 339–347.
Idler, D. R., Bitners, I. I. and Schmidt, P. J. 1961. 11-ketotestosterone: an androgen for sockeye salmon. Can. J. Biochem. Physiol. 39: 1737–1742.
Jakobsson, S., Mayer, I., Schulz, R. W., Blankenstein, M. A. and Borg, B. 1996. Specific binding in an androgen target organ, the kidney of the male three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus. Fish. Physiol. Biochem. 15: 459–467.
Laemmli, U. K. 1970. Cleavage of structural proteins during the assembly of the head of bacteriophage T4. Nature, Lond. 227: 680–685.
Limbaugh, C. 1962. Life history and ecological notes on the tubenose, Aulorhynchus flavidus, a hemibranch fish of western North America. Copeia 1962: 549–555.
Mayer, I., Borg, B. and Schulz, R. 1990. Seasonal changes in and effect of castration/androgen replacement on the plasma levels of five androgens in the male three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus L. Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 79: 23–30.
Meseguer, A. and Caterall, J. F. 1990. Cell-specific expression of kidney androgen-regulated protein messenger RNA is under multihormonal control. Mol. Endocrinol. 4: 1240–1248.
Meseguer, A., Watson, C. S. and Caterall, J. F. 1989. Nucleotide sequence of kidney androgen-regulated protein mRNA and its cell-specific expression in Tfm/Y mice. Mol. Endocrinol. 3: 962–970.
Pottinger, T. G. 1987. Androgen binding in the skin of mature male brown trout, Salmo trutta L. Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 66: 224–232.
Toole, J. J., Hastie, N. D. and Held, W. A. 1979. An abundant androgen-regulated mRNAin the mouse kidney. Cell 17: 441–448.
Urich, K. 1994. Extracellular structural and secretory proteins. In: Comparative Animal Biochemistry. Pp. 376–402. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
van Overbeeke, A. D. and McBride, J. R. 1971. Histological effects of 11-ketotestosterone, 17α-methyltestosterone, estradiol, estradiol cypionate and cortisol on the interrenal tissue, thyroid gland and pituitary gland of gonadectomized sockeye salmon, Oncorhyncus nerka. J. Fish. Res. Bd. Can. 28: 477–484.
Vilchis, F., Damsky, Y., Enriques, J. and Chavez, B. 1996. Identification and androgenregulation of a 156 kDa hemeprotein in the Harderian gland of the Syrian hamster. Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 101: 297–303.
Wai, E. H. and Hoar, W. S. 1963. The secondary sex character and reproductive behaviour of gonadectomized sticklebacks treated with methyl testosterone. Can. J. Zool. 41: 611–628.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Jakobsson, S., Borg, B., Haux, C. et al. An 11-ketotestosterone induced kidney-secreted protein: the nest building glue from male three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus . Fish Physiology and Biochemistry 20, 79–85 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007776016610
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007776016610