Research Group Functional Genome Analyses, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology, FBN, Wilhelm-Stahl-Allee 2, D-18196 Dummerstorf, Germany.
BMC Genomics. 2013 Aug 5;14:533. doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-14-533.
Physiological processes aiding the conversion of muscle to meat involve many genes associated with muscle structure and metabolic processes. MicroRNAs regulate networks of genes to orchestrate cellular functions, in turn regulating phenotypes.
We applied weighted gene co-expression network analysis to identify co-expression modules that correlated to meat quality phenotypes and were highly enriched for genes involved in glucose metabolism, response to wounding, mitochondrial ribosome, mitochondrion, and extracellular matrix. Negative correlation of miRNA with mRNA and target prediction were used to select transcripts out of the modules of trait-associated mRNAs to further identify those genes that are correlated with post mortem traits.
Porcine muscle co-expression transcript networks that correlated to post mortem traits were identified. The integration of miRNA and mRNA expression analyses, as well as network analysis, enabled us to interpret the differentially-regulated genes from a systems perspective. Linking co-expression networks of transcripts and hierarchically organized pairs of miRNAs and mRNAs to meat properties yields new insight into several biological pathways underlying phenotype differences. These pathways may also be diagnostic for many myopathies, which are accompanied by deficient nutrient and oxygen supply of muscle fibers.
有助于肌肉转化为肉的生理过程涉及许多与肌肉结构和代谢过程相关的基因。MicroRNAs 调节基因网络，协调细胞功能，进而调节表型。
我们应用加权基因共表达网络分析来鉴定与肉质表型相关的共表达模块，这些模块高度富集与葡萄糖代谢、对创伤的反应、线粒体核糖体、线粒体和细胞外基质相关的基因。miRNA 与 mRNA 的负相关和靶预测被用来从与性状相关的 mRNA 的模块中选择转录本，以进一步鉴定与死后性状相关的基因。
鉴定了与死后性状相关的猪肌肉共表达转录本网络。miRNA 和 mRNA 表达分析以及网络分析的整合，使我们能够从系统的角度解释差异调节的基因。将转录本的共表达网络与层次组织的 miRNA 和 mRNA 对联系起来，可以深入了解肉质差异背后的几个生物学途径。这些途径也可能是许多肌病的诊断依据，肌病伴有肌肉纤维营养和氧气供应不足。
