Ubiquitin ligase gene neurl3 plays a role in spermatogenesis of half-smooth tongue sole (Cynoglossus semilaevis) by regulating testis protein ubiquitination

E3 ubiquitin ligases are a large gene family that plays a diversity of roles in spermatogenesis. In this study, the functional characterization of a neuralized E3 ubiquitin protein ligase 3 (neurl3) revealed its potential participation in spermatogenesis. Firstly, we found that neurl3 exhibited male-biased transcription and that its translation was predominant in testis germ cells. The knockdown of neurl3 by RNA interference caused increased transcription of spermatogenesis-related genes. These results corroborate previous studies indicating a role for neurl3 in spermatogenesis. Moreover, the levels of neurl3 transcription and testis protein ubiquitination were closely correlated. Based on these findings, we speculate that neurl3 modulates testis protein ubiquitination in a dosage-dependent manner and that this influences spermatogenesis.