Mass Spectrometry Imaging of Lipids in the Scent Glands of Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) in Different Reproductive Statuses

Wenqian Xie; Shengheng Mu; Jinkun Zhong; Chaoran Zhang; Haolin Zhang; Xiaodong Wang; Qiang Weng

doi:10.3390/cells11142228

Mass Spectrometry Imaging of Lipids in the Scent Glands of Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) in Different Reproductive Statuses

Cells. 2022 Jul 18;11(14):2228. doi: 10.3390/cells11142228.

Authors

Wenqian Xie¹, Shengheng Mu¹, Jinkun Zhong¹, Chaoran Zhang¹, Haolin Zhang¹, Xiaodong Wang^{2

3}, Qiang Weng¹

Affiliations

¹ Laboratory of Animal Physiology, College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China.
² Key Laboratory of Mass Spectrometry Imaging and Metabolomics, Minzu University of China, State Ethnic Affairs Commission, Beijing 100081, China.
³ Centre for Imaging & Systems Biology, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing 100081, China.

Abstract

As a typical seasonal breeding animal, male muskrats have a pair of scent glands that can emit musky odor substances to attract females during the breeding period. The present study aimed to visualize the differences in the distribution of lipids in the scent glands of muskrats during their different reproductive statuses by imaging mass spectrometry and quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). The results revealed remarkable differences in the expression and spatial distribution of lipids detected in the scent glands of muskrats during the different reproductive statuses. In addition, the expression levels of lipid molecules PC (32:0) and LysoPC (16:0) were found to be significantly higher in the breeding season than in the non-breeding season. Moreover, the mRNA expression levels of lipid synthesis enzyme Pemt and Pla2g4b were higher in the breeding season than in the non-breeding season, and there were positive correlations between the expression intensities of lipid molecules and the expression levels of Pemt and Pla2g4b. The present study investigates the changes and distribution of the endogenous lipid in the scent glands of muskrats and elucidates that the seasonal changes in the lipid metabolism may affect the functions of the scent glands in muskrats.

Keywords: MALDI-MSI; lipid metabolism; muskrat; scent gland; seasonal changes.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Arvicolinae* / metabolism
Female
Lipids
Male
Mass Spectrometry
Reproduction
Scent Glands* / metabolism

Substances

Lipids

Grants and funding

This research was funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China, grant number 31872320 and Beijing Municipal Natural Science Foundation, grant number 6222042. This research work was supported by the Huayi Technology Innovation Center for Research Resources (HTIC P01 RR2017001A).