New Techniques for Creating Parthenogenetic Larvae of the Sea Urchin Lytechinus pictus for Gene Expression Studies.

BACKGROUND Sea urchins are model organisms for studying the spatial-temporal control of gene activity during development. The Southern California species, Lytechinus pictus, has a sequenced genome and can be raised in the laboratory from egg to egg in 4 to 5 months. RESULTS Here, we present new techniques for generating parthenogenetic larvae of this species and include a gallery of photomicrographs of morphologically abnormal larvae that could be used for transcriptomic analysis. CONCLUSIONS Comparison of gene expression in parthenogenotes to larvae produced by fertilization could provide novel insights into gene expression controls contributed by sperm in this important model organism. Knowledge gained from transcriptomics of sea urchin parthenogenotes could contribute to parthenogenetic studies of mammalian embryos.