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Animals
Special Issues
Innate Host Defence Mechanisms of Aquatic Animals
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Innate Host Defence Mechanisms of Aquatic Animals

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Aquatic Animals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 May 2026 | Viewed by 2025

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Marcia Saraiva

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
CIIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research of the University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
Interests: aquaculture; molecular; transcriptomics; pathogen
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The increased incidence of disease, driven by environmental changes, intensive farming, and emerging pathogens, underscores the importance of understanding host responses. The innate immune system, the first line of defence against pathogens in animals, is highly influenced by environmental factors such as water temperature, salinity, and pathogen exposure. Therefore, we invite researchers to share their latest insights regarding the innate immune response of aquatic animals to pathogens, as this will enable us to develop effective countermeasures. These contributions can be in the form of reviews, opinion articles, or original multidisciplinary research.

Dr. Marcia Saraiva
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • immunology
  • virus
  • bacteria
  • fungus
  • fungus-like

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

25 pages, 6172 KB  
Article
Transcriptional and Alternative Splicing Regulation of Autophagy and Vesicle Transport Pathways in Large Yellow Croaker Cells During Megalocytivirus Infection
by Zaiyu Zheng, Hongshu Chi, Xiaodong Liu, Xiuxia Chen, Ying Pan and Hui Gong
Animals 2026, 16(8), 1259; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani16081259 - 20 Apr 2026
Viewed by 323
Abstract
Infection of the large yellow croaker (Larimichthys crocea) embryo cell line YCE1 with megalocytivirus strain FD201807 leads to accumulation of capsid-deficient viral intermediates within intracellular vesicles at 48 h post-infection (a phenotype associated with non-lytic egress), which coincides with the initial [...] Read more.
Infection of the large yellow croaker (Larimichthys crocea) embryo cell line YCE1 with megalocytivirus strain FD201807 leads to accumulation of capsid-deficient viral intermediates within intracellular vesicles at 48 h post-infection (a phenotype associated with non-lytic egress), which coincides with the initial peak of viral genomic copies. To characterize the host molecular response during this critical stage, we performed time-course RNA sequencing at 24, 48, 96, and 144 hpi. Integrated analysis identified 6661 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 1138 differential alternative splicing (DAS) events affecting 892 genes, with DAS event abundance peaking at 48 h. DAS genes in autophagy and Golgi vesicle transport pathways, both integral to animal innate immunity, were significantly enriched exclusively at this timepoint, featuring novel mutually exclusive exon (MXE) isoforms in gopc (Golgi-associated PDZ and coiled-coil motif containing) and rint1 (RAD50 interactor 1). Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) of DEGs identified mapk9 (mitogen-activated protein kinase 9) and map1lc3a (microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 alpha) as hub genes within modules enriched for autophagy-related functions. Separate co-expression analysis of DAS genes revealed rnf5, rimoc1, and golga4 as hub genes, with gopc exhibiting only a single linkage to rnf5. These findings implied concurrent transcriptional and virus-induced host splicing regulation of vesicle-associated innate defense pathways and suggest that splicing-derived features may serve as potential candidates for diagnostics or prevention against megalocytivirus disease in L. crocea. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innate Host Defence Mechanisms of Aquatic Animals)
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18 pages, 2966 KB  
Article
Comparative Transcriptomic Analysis of the Liver and Spleen in Ussuri Catfish (Pseudobagrus ussuriensis) Challenged with Polyriboinosinic Polyribocytidylic Acid (Poly(I:C))
by Yu Liu, Ke Wang, Lingyun Lu, Huanhuan Miao, Libo Gu, Zhipeng Dou and Qing Liu
Animals 2025, 15(16), 2454; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani15162454 - 21 Aug 2025
Viewed by 1085
Abstract
Poly (I:C), a viral mimic, is capable of activating the antiviral immune mechanisms in teleosts. In this study, we investigated the transcriptional responses of Ussuri Catfish (Pseudobagrus ussuriensis) to poly (I:C) stimulation at 3 and 48 h, focusing on the similarities [...] Read more.
Poly (I:C), a viral mimic, is capable of activating the antiviral immune mechanisms in teleosts. In this study, we investigated the transcriptional responses of Ussuri Catfish (Pseudobagrus ussuriensis) to poly (I:C) stimulation at 3 and 48 h, focusing on the similarities and differences in antiviral mechanisms exhibited in the liver and spleen. At 3 h, the signaling pathways that were concurrently enriched in both the spleen and liver include JAK-STAT, TNF, NF-κB, RIG-I-like receptor, and NOD-like receptor. At 48 h, the signaling pathways that were concurrently enriched in both the spleen and liver include JAK-STAT signaling and cellular homeostasis processes. However, in the liver, the signaling pathways that responded to poly (I:C) stimulation at both 3 and 48 h are cytokine–cytokine receptor interaction and RIG-I-like receptor signaling. In the spleen, the signaling pathways that responded to poly (I:C) stimulation at both 3 and 48 h are Hippo signaling, Wnt signaling, TGF-β signaling, and ECM-receptor interaction. Ultimately, the pathways that were enriched in the intersection genes across all groups are JAK-STAT signaling, NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity, and ECM-receptor interaction, and the core genes identified in the intersection genes of all groups are PTPRS, HECW1, and ERN1 (IRE1), along with UMAD, DKK1, CSH, and RTKN2. Through this study, we identified the key signaling pathways and core genes involved in the antiviral response of Ussuri catfish. These findings provide valuable insights into the antiviral mechanisms of Ussuri catfish. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innate Host Defence Mechanisms of Aquatic Animals)
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