Identification and characterization of a myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88) cDNA from Zhikong scallop Chlamys farreri

Myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88) is a universal and essential adapter for the TLR/IL-1R family. In this report, the first mollusk Myd88 ortholog (named as CfMyd88) was cloned from Zhikong scallop (Chlamys farreri). The full-length cDNA of CfMyd88 was of 1554 bp, including a 5'-terminal untranslated region (UTR) of 427 bp, a polyA tail, and an open reading frame (ORF) of 1104 bp encoding a polypeptide of 367 amino acids containing the typical TLR and IL-1R-related (TIR) domain and death domain (DD). Homology analysis revealed that the predicted amino acid sequence of CfMyd88 was homologous to a variety of previously identified Myd88s with more than 30% identity. The temporal expressions of CfMyd88 mRNA in the mixed primary cultured haemocytes stimulated by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and peptidoglycans (PGN) were measured by real-time RT-PCR system. The mRNA expression of CfMyd88 decreased after stimulation with both LPS and PGN, and the lowest level was about 1/3 times (at 6 h) and 1/10 times (at 9 h) to that in the control group, respectively. The expression then recovered and was upregulated to two-fold at 9 h after LPS stimulation or to the original level at 12 h after PGN stimulation. The results suggest that the MyD88-dependent signaling pathway exists in scallop and was involved in the defense system.