Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei Province, 430070 China.
Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei Province, 430070 China.
Poult Sci. 2020 Feb;99(2):1199-1208. doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2019.10.021. Epub 2019 Dec 13.
The sperm storage tubules located in the mucosal folds of the uterovaginal junction (UVJ) are the primary site of sperm storage in chicken hens after natural mating or artificial insemination (AI). The short-term sperm storage (24 h after mating or AI) in hens was highly associated with immunity and pH-related pathway genes. However, the underlying mechanism of longer duration of sperm storage in female birds remains largely unclear. In the present study, transcriptome analysis was applied to uncover the dynamic gene expression changes in chicken UVJ tissues at two time points (day 3 and day 9) after AI. A total of 574 differentially expressed genes (DEG) were enriched, including 266 upregulated and 308 downregulated DEG. The validation of 5 DEG using quantitative PCR showed a similar expression tendency with RNA sequencing results. The gene ontology terms of DEG were highly enriched in heparin binding (9 genes including COMP, CTGF, and IMPG2), glycosaminoglycan binding (10 genes including PCOLCE, POSTN, and RSPO3), and response to estradiol and ion transport (AREG, RAMP3, SFRP1, and SSTR1). Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes pathway-enrichment analyses of DEG revealed 10 significant pathways (P < 0.05) represented by calcium signaling pathway (7 genes including CACNA1G, PDE1C, PDGFRB, and SLC8A1) and glycosaminoglycan biosynthesis (B3GNT7, CSGALNACT1, GLCE, and ST3GAL1). Protein-protein interaction network of DEG established the connection-regulating epithelial cell or cell-matrix adhesion and migration. The enriched pathways and genes were highly correlated with temporary sperm storage in and possibly sequential sperm release from chicken UVJ overtime after AI. Of these, HIP1, PDE1C, and calcium-related genes were the most interesting candidates associated with sperm storage duration. This report provided a global gene expression profile of the chicken UVJ regarding the capacity of sperm storage overtime after AI. The outcome of this study will contribute to further understanding of the long-term sperm maintenance in avian females and eventually improving the duration of fertile egg performance by selected chicken breeding.
鸡的子宫阴道连接部（UVJ）中的精子储存管是其自然交配或人工授精（AI）后鸡精子储存的主要部位。鸡的短期精子储存（交配或 AI 后 24 小时）与免疫和 pH 相关途径基因高度相关。然而，雌性鸟类中更长时间精子储存的潜在机制在很大程度上仍不清楚。在本研究中，应用转录组分析揭示了 AI 后 3 天和 9 天鸡 UVJ 组织中动态基因表达变化。共富集了 574 个差异表达基因（DEG），包括 266 个上调和 308 个下调的 DEG。使用定量 PCR 对 5 个 DEG 的验证显示与 RNA 测序结果具有相似的表达趋势。DEG 的基因本体术语高度富集于肝素结合（包括 COMP、CTGF 和 IMPG2 的 9 个基因）、糖胺聚糖结合（包括 PCOLCE、POSTN 和 RSPO3 的 10 个基因）以及对雌二醇和离子转运的反应（AREG、RAMP3、SFRP1 和 SSTR1）。DEG 的京都基因与基因组百科全书通路富集分析揭示了 10 个显著通路（P < 0.05），其中包括钙信号通路（包括 CACNA1G、PDE1C、PDGFRB 和 SLC8A1 的 7 个基因）和糖胺聚糖生物合成（B3GNT7、CSGALNACT1、GLCE 和 ST3GAL1）。DEG 的蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用网络建立了连接调节上皮细胞或细胞-基质粘附和迁移的关系。富集的通路和基因与 AI 后鸡 UVJ 中精子的临时储存以及可能的连续精子释放高度相关。其中，HIP1、PDE1C 和钙相关基因是与精子储存时间相关的最有趣的候选基因。本报告提供了鸡 UVJ 关于 AI 后精子储存时间的全局基因表达谱。这项研究的结果将有助于进一步了解禽类雌性中精子的长期维持，并最终通过选择鸡的繁殖来提高可育蛋的性能持续时间。
