深海狮子鱼视网膜结构及其光感受基因表达特征研究

doi:10.11978/2025250

热带海洋学报

深海狮子鱼视网膜结构及其光感受基因表达特征研究

辛晓彤^{1, 2, 3,4}, 闫健菲^{1, 2, 3,4}, 林强^{1, 2, 3,4}, 曲朦^{1, 2, 3,4}

1. 热带海洋环境国家重点实验室(中国科学院南海海洋研究所), 广东广州 510301;

2. 中国科学院大学, 北京 100049;

3. 海洋生物多样性与生态演化中心(中国科学院南海海洋研究所), 广东广州 510301;

4. 三亚海洋生态环境工程研究院, 海南三亚 572000

收稿日期:2025-12-30 修回日期:2026-02-25 接受日期:2026-03-06
通讯作者: 林强
基金资助:
国家重点研发计划(2023YFC2811501); 中国科学院南海海洋所基础前沿与创新发展2024年度”一体化”项目(SCSI02024QY01)

Study on Retinal Structure and Photoreception-Related Gene Expression Characteristics in Deep-Sea Snailfish

XIN Xiaotonge^{1, 2, 3,4}, YAN Jianfei^{1, 2, 3,4},LIN Qiang^{1, 2, 3,4}, QU Meng^{1, 2, 3,4}

1.State Key Laboratory of Tropical Oceanography (South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences), Guangzhou 510301, China;

2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China;

3. Marine Biodiversity and Ecological Evolution Research Center (South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences), Guangzhou 510301, China;

4. Sanya Institute of Ocean Eco-Environmental Engineering, Sanya 572000, China

Received:2025-12-30 Revised:2026-02-25 Accepted:2026-03-06
Supported by:
National Key Research and Development Program of China(2023YFC2811501); Special Fund of South China Sea Institute of Oceanology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(SCSIO2024QY01)

摘要/Abstract

摘要： 狮子鱼科(Liparidae)物种从近岸浅海表层、陆坡深海直至海沟深渊呈现连续的垂直分布梯度，经历了由光照充足、宽光谱到极端贫光的多尺度光环境变化，为解析脊椎动物视觉系统的光照适应机制提供了理想研究体系。本研究以分布于不同水深梯度的浅海细纹狮子鱼(Liparis tanakae)、深海科氏短吻狮子鱼(Careproctus colletti)和黑鳍短吻狮子鱼(Careproctus furcellus)，以及深渊马里亚纳狮子鱼(Pseudoliparis swirei)为对象，综合采用组织学显微、超微结构观察和眼转录组比较分析，系统探讨狮子鱼科在从浅海到深渊光环境梯度上的视觉适应特征。结果显示，与浅海鱼类视网膜中通常拥有较高比例的视锥细胞不同，深海狮子鱼视网膜中几乎完全由视杆细胞主导，并呈多层视杆外节排列，而视锥细胞占比极低；说明深海狮子鱼的明视觉和色觉几乎消失，主要依靠暗视觉感知物体轮廓，是对于深海弱光环境的特殊适应机制。比较转录组分析表明，不同水深狮子鱼眼球组表达谱差异显著：浅海物种高表达基因主要富集于光转导与昼夜节律通路，而深海与深渊种则更多富集于能量代谢、蛋白加工、自噬与应激响应等路径；视锥特异性短波敏感蛋白sws2仅在浅海物种中表达，而负责暗视觉的rh1基因在深海和深渊物种中表达量显著高于浅海狮子鱼。上述结果表明，狮子鱼科物种在由表层到深渊的垂直扩散与演化过程中，其视觉系统经历了由多色视觉向高敏感暗视觉的功能转变，本研究为深入理解硬骨鱼类对特殊光环境的适应演化机制提供了典型事例。

关键词: 狮子鱼科, 深海适应, 视觉系统, 视网膜结构, 光转导通路

Abstract: Snailfishes (Liparidae) span a continuous vertical gradient from sun-lit surface waters across the continental slope to the hadal trenches, experiencing a multi-scale transition from broad-spectrum, high-intensity light to extreme photon limitation. This natural gradient provides an unparalleled system for dissecting how vertebrate visual systems adapt to changing light regimes. We combined histological and ultrastructural examinations with comparative eye transcriptomics in four species occupying distinct depth zones: the shallow-water Liparis tanakae, the deep-sea Careproctus colletti and C. furcellus, and the hadal Pseudoliparis swirei. Whereas the shallow-water retina retains a sizeable cone population, deep-sea snailfish retinas are almost entirely rod-dominated, featuring stacked rod outer-segment tiers and only trace cones. This anatomical shift indicates the loss of bright-light and color vision, with object detection relying instead on highly sensitive scotopic pathways—an adaptation to the dim deep sea. Transcriptomic profiling revealed pronounced depth-related expression signatures: shallow-water species up-regulate phototransduction and circadian-rhythm genes, whereas deep-sea and hadal species prioritize energy metabolism, protein processing, autophagy and stress-response pathways. The cone-specific short-wavelength opsin sws2 is restricted to the shallow-water species, whereas the rod-specific rh1 is significantly elevated in deep-sea and hadal taxa. Together, these data demonstrate that snailfishes have functionally traded color vision for high-sensitivity scotopic vision during their vertical expansion from surface to abyss, offering a clear example of how teleosts adapt to extreme light environments.

Key words: Liparidae, deep-sea adaptation, visual system, retinal structure, phototransduction pathway

辛晓彤闫健菲林强曲朦. 深海狮子鱼视网膜结构及其光感受基因表达特征研究[J]. 热带海洋学报, 0, (): 1-.

XIN Xiaotonge YAN Jianfei LIN Qiang QU Meng. Study on Retinal Structure and Photoreception-Related Gene Expression Characteristics in Deep-Sea Snailfish[J]. Journal of Tropical Oceanography, 0, (): 1-.