Gao Wen, Zhang Chen, Jin Kai, Zhang Yani, Zuo Qisheng, Li Bichun
Key Laboratory of Animal Breeding Reproduction and Molecular Design for Jiangsu Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China.
Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture and Agri-Product Safety of Ministry of Education of China, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China.
Animals (Basel). 2020 Oct 11;10(10):1850. doi: 10.3390/ani10101850.
Germ cells have an irreplaceable role in transmitting genetic information from one generation to the next, and also play an important role in sex differentiation in poultry, while little is known about epigenetic factors that regulate germ cell differentiation. In this study, RNA-seq was used to detect the expression profiles of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) during the differentiation of chicken embryonic stem cells (ESCs) into spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs). The results showed that a total of 296, 280 and 357 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DELs) were screened in ESCs vs. PGCs, ESCs vs. SSCs and PGCs vs. SSCs, respectively. Gene Ontology (GO) and KEGG enrichment analysis showed that DELs in the three cell groups were mainly enriched in autophagy, Wnt/β-catenin, TGF-β, Notch and ErbB and signaling pathways. The co-expression network of 37 candidate DELs and their target genes enriched in the biological function of germ cell development showed that XLOC_612026, XLOC_612029, XLOC_240662, XLOC_362463, XLOC_023952, XLOC_674549, XLOC_160716, ALDBGALG0000001810, ALDBGALG0000002986, XLOC_657380674549, XLOC_022100 and XLOC_657380 were the key lncRNAs in the process of male germ cell formation and, moreover, the function of these DELs may be related to the interaction of their target genes. Our findings preliminarily excavated the key lncRNAs and signaling pathways in the process of male chicken germ cell formation, which could be helpful to construct the gene regulatory network of germ cell development, and also provide new ideas for further optimizing the induction efficiency of germ cells in vitro.
生殖细胞在将遗传信息从一代传递到下一代的过程中具有不可替代的作用，并且在禽类的性别分化中也发挥着重要作用，然而，关于调控生殖细胞分化的表观遗传因素却知之甚少。在本研究中，利用RNA测序技术检测鸡胚胎干细胞（ESCs）向精原干细胞（SSCs）分化过程中长链非编码RNA（lncRNAs）的表达谱。结果显示，在ESCs与PGCs、ESCs与SSCs、PGCs与SSCs的比较中，分别筛选出296、280和357个差异表达的lncRNAs（DELs）。基因本体论（GO）和KEGG富集分析表明，三个细胞组中的DELs主要富集于自噬、Wnt/β-连环蛋白、TGF-β、Notch和ErbB信号通路。37个候选DELs及其靶基因的共表达网络在生殖细胞发育的生物学功能中富集，结果表明XLOC_612026、XLOC_612029、XLOC_240662、XLOC_362463、XLOC_023952、XLOC_674549、XLOC_160716、ALDBGALG0000001810、ALDBGALG0000002986、XLOC_657380674549、XLOC_022100和XLOC_657380是雄性生殖细胞形成过程中的关键lncRNAs，此外，这些DELs的功能可能与其靶基因的相互作用有关。我们的研究结果初步挖掘了雄性鸡生殖细胞形成过程中的关键lncRNAs和信号通路，这有助于构建生殖细胞发育的基因调控网络，也为进一步优化体外生殖细胞诱导效率提供了新的思路。
