Identification of aquaporin (AQP) genes in the noble scallop Chlamys nobilis and characterization of their expression under low-temperature stress.

Qiqi He; Beiyu Yan; Yaoting Liu; Shitong Liu; Yifan Li; Haixin Hu; Hongkuan Zhang; Huaiping Zheng

doi:10.1016/j.cbd.2026.101897

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Identification of aquaporin (AQP) genes in the noble scallop Chlamys nobilis and characterization of their expression under low-temperature stress.

Qiqi He·Beiyu Yan·Yaoting Liu·Shitong Liu·Yifan Li·Haixin Hu·Hongkuan Zhang·Huaiping Zheng

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Abstract

Aquaporins (AQPs) are transmembrane channel proteins essential for water homeostasis and cellular stress responses. In marine bivalves, their roles in cold tolerance remain poorly understood despite frequent winter mortality events in aquaculture. Here, we identified nine AQP genes in the genome of the economically important noble scallop Chlamys nobilis. Phylogenetic analysis revealed strong conservation with other bivalve AQPs, and structural features, including conserved NPA motifs and ar/R selectivity filters, support their canonical water/glycerol transport functions. Tissue-specific expression profiling showed predominant enrichment in osmoregulatory tissues (gills, intestine) and gonads. Under both chronic and acute low-temperature stress from 23 °C to 9 °C, most CnAQP genes exhibited transient upregulation followed by suppression. Notably, CnAQP4 displayed sustained upregulation, implicating it as a key mediator of long-term cold adaptation. Promoter analysis further revealed abundant cis-elements linked to growth and development as well as immune regulation. Our findings provide the first comprehensive characterization of the AQP family in C. nobilis, highlighting its critical role in maintaining cellular integrity during cold stress and offering molecular targets for selective breeding of cold-tolerant scallop strains.

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Animals Phylogeny Aquaporins Pectinidae Cold Temperature Amino Acid Sequence Stress, Physiological Promoter Regions, Genetic Gene Expression Regulation Gene Expression Profiling Aquaporin Chlamys nobilis Cold stress Gene expression Osmoregulation Stress adaptation Journal Article

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Qiqi He, Beiyu Yan, Yaoting Liu, Shitong Liu, Yifan Li, Haixin Hu, Hongkuan Zhang, Huaiping Zheng. 2026-06-09. Identification of aquaporin (AQP) genes in the noble scallop Chlamys nobilis and characterization of their expression under low-temperature stress.. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbd.2026.101897

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Journal Article resource Amino Acid Sequence subject Animals subject Cold Temperature subject Gene Expression Profiling subject Gene Expression Regulation subject Journal Article subject Osmoregulation subject Pectinidae subject Phylogeny subject Promoter Regions, Genetic subject

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