Zhang Ying, Su Woyu, Zhang Bo, Ling Yao, Kim Woo Kyun, Zhang Hao
National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, Plateau Animal Genetic Resources Center, China Agricultural University, No. 2 Yuanmingyuan West Rd, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China.
Department of Poultry Science, University of Georgia, 303 Poultry Science Building, Athens, GA, 30602, USA.
J Anim Sci Biotechnol. 2021 May 3;12(1):60. doi: 10.1186/s40104-021-00582-2.
Tibetan chickens, a unique native breed in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau of China, possess a suite of adaptive features that enable them to tolerate the high-altitude hypoxic environment. Increasing evidence suggests that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) play roles in the hypoxic adaptation of high-altitude animals, although their exact involvement remains unclear.
This study aimed to elucidate the global landscape of mRNAs, lncRNAs, and miRNAs using transcriptome sequencing to construct a regulatory network of competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) and thus provide insights into the hypoxic adaptation of Tibetan chicken embryos. In total, 354 differentially expressed genes (DE genes), 389 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DE lncRNAs), and 73 differentially expressed miRNAs (DE miRNAs) were identified between Tibetan chickens (TC) and control Chahua chickens (CH). GO and KEGG enrichment analysis revealed that several important DE miRNAs and their target DE lncRNAs and DE genes are involved in angiogenesis (including blood vessel development and blood circulation) and energy metabolism (including glucose, carbohydrate, and lipid metabolism). The ceRNA network was then constructed with the predicted DE gene-DE miRNA-DE lncRNA interactions, which further revealed the regulatory roles of these differentially expressed RNAs during hypoxic adaptation of Tibetan chickens.
Analysis of transcriptomic data revealed several key candidate ceRNAs that may play high-priority roles in the hypoxic adaptation of Tibetan chickens by regulating angiogenesis and energy metabolism. These results provide insights into the molecular mechanisms of hypoxic adaptation regulatory networks from the perspective of coding and non-coding RNAs.
藏鸡是中国青藏高原特有的本土品种，具有一系列适应性特征，使其能够耐受高海拔缺氧环境。越来越多的证据表明，长链非编码RNA（lncRNA）和微小RNA（miRNA）在高海拔动物的缺氧适应中发挥作用，尽管它们的确切作用仍不清楚。
本研究旨在通过转录组测序阐明mRNA、lncRNA和miRNA的整体情况，构建竞争性内源RNA（ceRNA）调控网络，从而深入了解藏鸡胚胎的缺氧适应性。总共在藏鸡（TC）和对照茶花鸡（CH）之间鉴定出354个差异表达基因（DE基因）、389个差异表达lncRNA（DE lncRNA）和73个差异表达miRNA（DE miRNA）。基因本体（GO）和京都基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）富集分析表明，几个重要的DE miRNA及其靶标DE lncRNA和DE基因参与血管生成（包括血管发育和血液循环）和能量代谢（包括葡萄糖、碳水化合物和脂质代谢）。然后利用预测的DE基因-DE miRNA-DE lncRNA相互作用构建ceRNA网络，进一步揭示了这些差异表达RNA在藏鸡缺氧适应过程中的调控作用。
转录组数据分析揭示了几个关键的候选ceRNA，它们可能通过调节血管生成和能量代谢在藏鸡的缺氧适应中发挥重要作用。这些结果从编码和非编码RNA的角度为缺氧适应调控网络的分子机制提供了见解。
