Downregulation in Mouse Spermatogonia Functions through /.

Protein arginine methyltransferases 7 () is expressed in male germ cells, including primordial germ cells, gonocytes, and spermatogonia. Our previous study demonstrated that downregulation reduced the proliferation of GC-1 cells (a cell line of mouse immortalized spermatogonia). However, how regulates spermatogonial proliferation through miRNA and the target gene remains elusive. Here, we experimentally reduced the expression in the GC-1 cells and subjected them to miRNA sequencing to explore the miRNA profile and its -responsive members. In total, 48 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs), including 36 upregulated and 12 downregulated miRNAs, were identified. After verifying the validity of sequencing results through qRT-PCR assays in randomly selected DEmiRNAs, we predicted the target genes of these DEmiRNAs. Next, we combined DEmiRNA target genes and previously identified differentially expressed genes between knockdown and control groups of GC-1 cells, which resulted in seven miRNA/target gene pairs. Among these miRNA/target gene pairs, we further detected the expression of (collagen type VI alpha 3) as the target gene of . The results suggested that downregulation in mouse spermatogonia might function through /. Overall, these findings provide new insights into the role of in male germ cell development through miRNA and target genes.