基于 RNA-seq 的绵羊脂肪尾进化关键基因的鉴定。

Identification of key genes in sheep fat tail evolution Based on RNA-seq.

机构信息

College of Animal Science, Xinjiang Agricultural University, Urumqi 830052, China.

College of Animal Science, Xinjiang Agricultural University, Urumqi 830052, China; Department of Veterinary Management of Animal Resources, Fundamental and Applied Research for Animals and Health (FARAH), University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.

出版信息

Gene. 2021 May 20;781:145492. doi: 10.1016/j.gene.2021.145492. Epub 2021 Feb 23.

DOI:10.1016/j.gene.2021.145492

PMID:33631247

Abstract

Fat tail is one of the most important domesticated characteristics in sheep; however its molecular mechanism is poorly understood. Here we took small-tailed F2 hybrid of wild Argali sheep and typical fat-tailed Bashby sheep as research object. First, histological analysis revealed that the mean diameter and area in tail and subcutaneous fat cells, and surface density in tail fat in Bashby sheep were significantly larger than that in F2 sheep, and surface density of fat in subcutaneous fat in Bashby sheep was significantly lower than that in F2 sheep. Second, 873 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) of tail fat between Bashby and F2 sheep were identified by RNA-seq. Third, the tissue expression profile and relative expression difference between Bashby and F2 sheep of 7 of 873 DEGs were analyzed by RT-PCR. SCD, ESR1, EMR1, PHYH, STAT3 and GPAM genes were highly expressed in fat, muscle and liver, and ALDH1A1 were highly expressed in small intestine. In addition, the expressions of SCD, PHYH and CPAM genes in tail fat of F2 sheep were lower than that of Bashby sheep, while the expression patterns of ESR1 and EMR1 were reversed. Our findings will not only help understand molecular mechanism of fat tail, but also provide theoretical material in sheep evolution.

摘要

脂肪尾是绵羊最重要的驯化特征之一；然而，其分子机制尚不清楚。本研究以野生盘羊小尾杂种 F2 代和典型的大尾滩羊为研究对象。首先，组织学分析表明，滩羊尾部和皮下脂肪细胞的平均直径和面积以及尾部脂肪的表面密度显著大于 F2 羊，而滩羊皮下脂肪的表面密度显著低于 F2 羊。其次，通过 RNA-seq 鉴定了滩羊和 F2 羊尾部脂肪之间的 873 个差异表达基因（DEGs）。第三，通过 RT-PCR 分析了 7 个 DEGs 在 873 个 DEGs 中的组织表达谱和相对表达差异。SCD、ESR1、EMR1、PHYH、STAT3 和 GPAM 基因在脂肪、肌肉和肝脏中高表达，ALDH1A1 在小肠中高表达。此外，F2 羊尾部脂肪中 SCD、PHYH 和 CPAM 基因的表达低于滩羊，而 ESR1 和 EMR1 的表达模式则相反。本研究结果不仅有助于了解脂肪尾的分子机制，还为绵羊进化提供了理论材料。