The Glutamine Synthetases Are Required for Sensory Hair Cell Formation and Auditory Function in Zebrafish

Zhao, Yuanrong; Wang, Ziyang; Xu, Mengting; Qian, Fuping; Wei, Guanyun; Liu, Dong

doi:10.3390/ijms252111561

Open AccessArticle

The Glutamine Synthetases Are Required for Sensory Hair Cell Formation and Auditory Function in Zebrafish

by

Yuanrong Zhao

^†,

Ziyang Wang

^†,

Mengting Xu

,

Fuping Qian

,

Guanyun Wei

^* and

Dong Liu

^*

Nantong Laboratory of Development and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, Co-Innovation Center of Neuroregeneration, Nantong University, Qixiu Road 19, Nantong 226001, China

^*

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(21), 11561; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252111561

Submission received: 21 September 2024 / Revised: 22 October 2024 / Accepted: 24 October 2024 / Published: 28 October 2024

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Zebrafish as a Model for Biomedical Studies—2nd Edition)

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Abstract

The development of sensory hair cells (HCs) is closely linked to hearing loss. There are still many unidentified genes that may play a crucial role in HC development and function. Glutamine synthetase, Glul, is expressed in sensory hair cells and auditory organs. However, the role of the Glul gene family in the auditory system remains largely unexplored. This study aims to investigate the function of the Glul gene family in the auditory system. The expression patterns of the glul gene family were examined via in situ hybridization in zebrafish embryos. It was revealed that the expression of glula occurred in the otic vesicle, while glulb was expressed in the neuromast. In contrast, glulc did not exhibit any discernible signal. glula loss of function caused abnormal otolith formation and reduced hair cell number in otic vesicles, while glulb knockdown caused a decrease in HC number in both neuromasts and otic vesicles and impaired auditory function. Furthermore, we found that the knockdown of glulb induces apoptosis of hair cells. Transcriptomic analysis of zebrafish with glula and glulb knockdown revealed significant alterations in the expression of many genes associated with auditory organs. The current study sheds light on the requirement of glula and glulb in zebrafish hair cell formation and auditory function.

Keywords: hair cells; glutamine synthetases; apoptosis; hearing; zebrafish

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MDPI and ACS Style

Zhao, Y.; Wang, Z.; Xu, M.; Qian, F.; Wei, G.; Liu, D. The Glutamine Synthetases Are Required for Sensory Hair Cell Formation and Auditory Function in Zebrafish. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25, 11561. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252111561

AMA Style

Zhao Y, Wang Z, Xu M, Qian F, Wei G, Liu D. The Glutamine Synthetases Are Required for Sensory Hair Cell Formation and Auditory Function in Zebrafish. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2024; 25(21):11561. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252111561

Chicago/Turabian Style

Zhao, Yuanrong, Ziyang Wang, Mengting Xu, Fuping Qian, Guanyun Wei, and Dong Liu. 2024. "The Glutamine Synthetases Are Required for Sensory Hair Cell Formation and Auditory Function in Zebrafish" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 25, no. 21: 11561. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252111561

APA Style

Zhao, Y., Wang, Z., Xu, M., Qian, F., Wei, G., & Liu, D. (2024). The Glutamine Synthetases Are Required for Sensory Hair Cell Formation and Auditory Function in Zebrafish. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 25(21), 11561. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252111561

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The Glutamine Synthetases Are Required for Sensory Hair Cell Formation and Auditory Function in Zebrafish

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