Data from: Transcriptome analysis reveals the mechanism underlying rapid changes in the early phase brain of bi-directional sex change in Trimma okinawae

<p>Teleost fish exhibit remarkable sexual plasticity and display divergent developmental systems including hermaphroditism. One of the more fascinating model systems of sexual plasticity is socially controlled sex change, which is often observed in coral reef fish. The Okinawa rubble goby, <em>Trimma okinawae</em>, is a bi-directional sex change fish that can rapidly change its sex in both directions depending on social circumstances. Although behavioral and neuro-endocrinal sex change occurs within an hour and is believed to trigger gonadal changes, the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. In this study, we conducted a de novo transcriptome analysis of the <em>T. okinawae</em> brain and identified genes that were differentially expressed between the sexes and genes that were immediately controlled by social stimulation causing a sex change. We found that a larger number of genes are regulated during the male-to-female transition compared with a change from female to male. Several genes showed concordant expression shifts regardless of the sex change direction. Furthermore, some were associated with histone modification in nerve cells and regulated in the same direction. Overall, we identified genes that regulate the rapid behavioral and neuroendocrinal control of sex change and provide insight into the mechanism of sexual plasticity in teleost fish.</p>