Different transcriptomic responses of two marine copepods, Tigriopus japonicus and Pseudodiaptomus annandalei, to a low dose of mercury chloride (HgCl2)

•We analyzed whole transcriptomes upon 10 μg/L HgCl2 in seawater for 5 h.•101 genes in T. japonicus and 18 genes in P. annandalei were differentially regulated upon HgCl2 exposure.•The up-regulated genes in T. japonicus were concerned with stress, growth, and development.•The down-regulated ones in T. japonicus were mainly related to immune response.•In P. annandalei, most of up-regulated genes were involved in stress response.

Mercury (Hg) pollution is a ubiquitous and serious concern in marine environments, but the response mechanisms of marine animals to Hg pollution (i.e., toxicity/tolerance) are poorly understood. To compare the global responses of two marine copepods (Tigriopus japonicus and Pseudodiaptomus annandalei), we analyzed whole transcriptomes using RNA-seq technology in response to Hg treatment (a nominal 10 μg/L HgCl2 in seawater) for 5 h. Hg was strikingly accumulated in both copepods under treatment. The Hg concentration in P. annandalei was higher under metal exposure by approximately 1.4-fold compared with treated T. japonicus. Among transcriptomic data, 101 genes in T. japonicus and 18 genes in P. annandalei were differentially regulated in response to Hg exposure. The up-regulated genes in T. japonicus were concerned with stress, growth, and development, while the down-regulated ones were mainly related to immune response. In P. annandalei, most of the differentially expressed genes were up-regulated, and all were involved in stress response. Our work indicated that Hg exhibits endocrine-disrupting potential at the transcriptomic level in marine copepods. Overall, our study demonstrates the species-specific molecular responses of these two copepods to Hg pollution.