College of Animal Science, Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Equine Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Scientific Observing and Experimental Station of Equine Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Equine Research Centre, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Zhaowuda RD.306, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, PR China.
Inner Mongolia Academy of Agricultural and Animal Husbandry Sciences, Zhaojun RD.22, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, PR China.
Reprod Fertil Dev. 2020 Mar;32(6):582-593. doi: 10.1071/RD19133.
Numerous studies have shown that microRNAs (miRNAs) are essential for testicular development and spermatogenesis. In order to further characterise these physiological processes, three immature and three mature testes of the Mongolian horse were collected and six libraries were established. Using small RNA sequencing technology, 531 mature miRNAs were identified, including 46 novel miRNAs without previously ascribed functions. Among the 531 miRNAs, 421 were expressed in both immature and mature libraries, 65 miRNAs were found solely in immature testis libraries and 45 miRNAs were found solely in mature testis libraries. Furthermore, among the miRNAs that were identified in both immature and mature libraries, 107 were significantly differentially expressed (corrected P value (padj)<0.05). Among the miRNAs that were only expressed in immature testes, two miRNAs were differentially expressed, whereas among the miRNAs that were only expressed in mature testes, nine miRNAs were differentially expressed. Comprehensive analysis of miRNA and mRNA expression profiles predicted 107 miRNA-mRNA interaction sites. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopaedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis of the predicted target genes suggested roles of the differentially expressed miRNAs in testicular development and spermatogenesis. These findings identify miRNAs as key factors in the development of the testes and spermatogenesis in the Mongolian horse, which may also help us to understand the mechanisms of fertility in related mammalian species.
大量研究表明 microRNAs（miRNAs）在睾丸发育和精子发生中起着至关重要的作用。为了进一步研究这些生理过程，我们收集了 3 个未成熟和 3 个成熟的蒙古马睾丸，并建立了 6 个文库。使用小 RNA 测序技术，鉴定出 531 个成熟的 miRNAs，其中包括 46 个以前没有功能的新 miRNAs。在这 531 个 miRNAs 中，有 421 个在未成熟和成熟文库中都有表达，有 65 个 miRNAs 仅在未成熟睾丸文库中发现，有 45 个 miRNAs 仅在成熟睾丸文库中发现。此外，在未成熟和成熟文库中都有鉴定到的 miRNAs 中，有 107 个表达差异显著（校正 P 值（padj）<0.05）。在仅在未成熟睾丸中表达的 miRNAs 中，有两个 miRNAs 表达差异，而在仅在成熟睾丸中表达的 miRNAs 中，有 9 个 miRNAs 表达差异。miRNA 和 mRNA 表达谱的综合分析预测了 107 个 miRNA-mRNA 相互作用位点。预测靶基因的基因本体论（GO）和京都基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）通路分析表明，差异表达的 miRNAs 在睾丸发育和精子发生中发挥作用。这些发现表明 miRNAs 是蒙古马睾丸发育和精子发生的关键因素，这也可能有助于我们理解相关哺乳动物物种的生育机制。
