Data on RNA-seq analysis of the oviducts of five closely related species genus Littorina (Mollusca, Caenogastropoda): L. saxatilis, L. arcana, L. compressa, L. obtusata, L. fabalis

In the evolution of invertebrates, the transition from egg-layers to brooders occurred many times. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying this transition are still not well understood. Recently diverged species genus Littorina (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Caenogastropoda, Littorinimorpha): Littorina saxatilis, L. arcana, L. compressa, L. obtusata and L. fabalis might be a fruitful model for elucidation of these mechanisms. All five species sympatrically inhabit an intertidal zone. Only L. saxatilis is ovoviviparous while the other four species form clutches. Although in L. saxatilis jelly gland of the pallial oviduct function as a brood pouch, it is not deeply modified at the morphological level in comparison to egg-laying relatives. Comparative analysis of transcriptomic profiles of the pallial oviducts of these closely related species might help to uncover the molecular mechanisms of the egg-laying to brooding transition. Unraveling of the mechanisms underlying this transition in L. saxatilis is important not only in aspects of reproduction biology and strategy, but also in a broader view as an example of relatively fast evolutionary transformations. We generated an RNA-seq dataset (224 104 446 clean reads) for oviducts of five species genus Littorina. Libraries of all five species were sequenced using Illumina HiSeq 2500; additional reads for L. arcana were obtained using Illumina NovaSeq 6000. Transcriptomic profiles were analyzed in pooled samples (of three individuals) with two biological replicates for each species (each biological replicate was prepared and sequenced as a separate library). The transcriptome was assembled de novo and annotated with five assembles corresponding to each species. The raw data were uploaded to the SRA database, the BioProject IDs are PRJNA662103 (“obtusata” group) and PRJNA707549 (“saxatilis” group).