Real-time polymerase chain reaction, in situ hybridization and immunohistochemical localization of insulin-like growth factor-I and myostatin during development of Dicentrarchus labrax (Pisces: Osteichthyes)

The distribution of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and myostatin (MSTN) was investigated in sea bass ( Dicentrarchus labrax ) by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), in situ hybridization (ISH) and immunohistochemistry. Real-time PCR indicated that IGF-I mRNA increased from the second day post-hatching and that this trend became significant from day 4. ISH confirmed a strong IGF-I mRNA expression from the first week post-hatching, with the most abundant expression being detected in the liver of larvae and adults. Real-time PCR also showed that the level of MSTN mRNA increased significantly from day 25. The expression of MSTN mRNA was higher in muscle and almost absent in other anatomical regions in both larvae and adults. Interestingly, the lateral muscle showed a quantitative differential expression of IGF-I and MSTN mRNAs in red and white muscle, depending on the developmental stage examined. IGF-I immunoreactivity was detected in developing intestine at hatching and in skeletal muscle, skin and yolk sac. MSTN immunostaining was evident in several tissues and organs in both larvae and adults. Both IGF-I and MSTN proteins were detected in the liver from day 4 post-hatching and, subsequently, in the kidney and heart muscle from day 10. Our results suggest, on the basis of a combined methodological approach, that IGF-I and MSTN are involved in the regulation of somatic growth in the sea bass.