Osmoregulatory strategies of estuarine fish Scatophagus argus in response to environmental salinity changes

BACKGROUND: Scatophagus argus, an estuarine inhabitant, can rapidly adapt to different salinity environments. However, the knowledge of the molecular mechanisms underlying its strong salinity tolerance remains unclear. The gill, as the main osmoregulatory organ, plays a vital role in the salinity adaptation of the fish, and thus relative studies are constructive to reveal unique osmoregulatory mechanisms in S. argus. RESULTS: In the present study, iTRAQ coupled with nanoLC-MS/MS techniques were employed to explore branchial osmoregulatory mechanisms in S. argus acclimated to different salinities. Among 1,604 identified proteins, 796 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were detected. To further assess osmoregulatory strategies in the gills under different salinities, DEPs related to osmoregulatory (22), non-directional (18), hypo- (52), and hypersaline (40) stress responses were selected. Functional annotation analysis of these selected DEPs indicated that the cellular ion regulation (e.g. Na(+)-K(+)-ATPase [NKA] and Na(+)-K(+)-2Cl(−) cotransporter 1 [NKCC1]) and ATP synthesis were deeply involved in the osmoregulatory process. As an osmoregulatory protein, NKCC1 expression was inhibited under hyposaline stress but showed the opposite trend in hypersaline conditions. The expression levels of NKA α1 and β1 were only increased under hypersaline challenge. However, hyposaline treatments could enhance branchial NKA activity, which was inhibited under hypersaline environments, and correspondingly, reduced ATP content was observed in gill tissues exposed to hyposaline conditions, while its contents were increased in hypersaline groups. In vitro experiments indicated that Na(+), K(+), and Cl(−) ions were pumped out of branchial cells under hypoosmotic stress, whereas they were absorbed into cells under hyperosmotic conditions. Based on our results, we speculated that NKCC1-mediated Na(+) influx was inhibited, and proper Na(+) efflux was maintained by improving NKA activity under hyposaline stress, promoting the rapid adaptation of branchial cells to the hyposaline condition. Meanwhile, branchial cells prevented excessive loss of ions by increasing NKA internalization and reducing ATP synthesis. In contrast, excess ions in cells exposed to the hyperosmotic medium were excreted with sufficient energy supply, and reduced NKA activity and enhanced NKCC1-mediated Na(+) influx were considered a compensatory regulation. CONCLUSIONS: S. argus exhibited divergent osmoregulatory strategies in the gills when encountering hypoosmotic and hyperosmotic stresses, facilitating effective adaptabilities to a wide range of environmental salinity fluctuation. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-022-08784-2.