Isolation of Two Hepcidin Paralogs, Hamp1 and Hamp2, from a Euryhaline Javanese Ricefish (Oryzias javanicus: Beloniformes)

Two hepcidin paralogs (ojhamp1 and ojhamp2) were isolated and characterized from a euryhaline Javanese ricefish (Oryzias javanicus: Beloniformes). The ojhamp1 cDNA encoded 90 or 91 amino acids (aa) of a typical HAMP1 preproprotein. This preproprotein is believed to cleave and yield the 66 or 67 aa-proprotein, followed by the 26 aa-mature peptide, composed of 8 conserved cysteine residues and the QSHL amino terminal motif. The ojhamp2 cDNA encoded 89 aa of HAMP2 preproprotein, cleaved to yield a 65 aa proprotein, and subsequently the 25 aa-mature peptide. The mature OJHAMP1 possessed a cationic isoelectric point (pI), whereas OJHAMP2 had an anionic charge. At the genomic level, both ojhamp1 and ojhamp2 share a conserved tripartite structure (three exons interrupted by two introns) with other vertebrate hepcidin genes. However, the ojhamp1 was shown to exist as two distinct mRNA species, encoding 90 or 91 aa, due to alternative splicing at the junction site between intron I and exon II. Both ojhamp1 and ojhamp2 transcripts were detected in a wide range of tissue types with varying levels of basal expression, although the highest expression was observed in the liver for both isoforms. Transcriptional response to bacterial challenge using Edwardsiella tarda showed that ojhamp1 was moderately upregulated in the liver but remained unchanged in the kidney. However, the ojhamp2 was significantly suppressed in both the kidney and liver, suggesting a potential diversification between the two paralogs.