Project Description

The one-humped Arabian camel (Camelus dromedarius) has a remarkable capacity to survive extended periods of water deprivation. The mammalian brain regulates water balance through the synthesis and secretion of the antidiuretic hormone arginine vasopressin (AVP) by the hypothalamo- neurohypophysial system (HNS).   AVP acts on the kidney to provoke water reabsorption. Interestingly, the ultrastructure of the camel HNS changes according to season, suggesting that in the arid conditions of summer, the dromedary HNS is in a state of permanent activation, in preparation for the likely prospect of water deprivation. We have recently sequenced the genome of Camelus dromedarius. Based on this unique resource, we will now describe, in comprehensive detail, the transcriptome of the camel HNS, and how this is altered by dehydration. Camels will be simultaneously subjected to robust physiological and morphological investigation. HNS transcriptome datasets will be compared to existing rodent data sets, and subject to bioinformatic analyses to reveal nodal target genes, which will be validated at the RNA and protein levels.