Fig. 4

Expression patterns of genes in the melanin synthesis pathways upon salt treatment in F. taiwana eggs. The final two genes (laccase2 and DCE) in the melanin synthesis pathway are down-regulated in NaCl-treated eggs, likely explaining why such eggs remain pink (unmelanized). R: RNA-seq, Q: qRT-PCR, both are means of log₂ fold difference between black and pink eggs. TH: tyrosine 3-monooxygenase; PO: phenoloxidase; DDC: Dopa decarboxylase; DCE (yellow): dopachrome conversion enzyme. NA, not significant. PO has multiple isoforms and with both up- and down-regulated isoforms, so its regulation is denoted as NA. Transcript IDs are in Additional file 9