Sex Differentiation Mechanisms in Aquatic Species

Dear Colleagues,

Sex differentiation is a fundamental biological process that determines whether an organism develops as a male, female, or hermaphrodite. Pronounced sexual dimorphism in growth rate, body size, and gonadal development is frequently observed across aquatic species. Furthermore, the strong market demand for the mature gonads of species such as sturgeon, crabs, and sea urchins makes controlling the sex of these organisms an important breeding objective in aquaculture. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms of sex determination and differentiation is essential not only for developmental and evolutionary biology, but also sex-control technologies that can improve aquaculture productivity and efficiency.

Rapid progress in high-throughput sequencing, genome editing, and multi-omics technologies has greatly accelerated research on key regulatory genes, epigenetic pathways, endocrine signals, and environmental factors involved in sex differentiation. These advances have deepened our understanding of the molecular and cellular foundations of sexual development in various aquatic species and enabled applications such as sex-controlled breeding, germ cell manipulation, and sustainable aquaculture production.

This Special Issue welcomes studies that provide new insights into the molecular, cellular, developmental, and environmental mechanisms underlying sex differentiation in aquatic species, including both vertebrates and invertebrates. Contributions employing genomics, transcriptomics, epigenetics, cell culture, functional assays, comparative analyses, or innovative breeding strategies are particularly encouraged.

Prof. Dr. Mingyou Li
Dr. Zhihui Sun
Dr. Jun Zhang
Topic Editors