Sun Zhipeng, Hong Qionghua, Liu Yufang, Ren Chunhuan, He Xiaoyun, Jiang Yanting, Ouyang Yina, Chu Mingxing, Zhang Zijun
College of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China.
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China.
Animals (Basel). 2022 Oct 18;12(20):2823. doi: 10.3390/ani12202823.
The oviduct is associated with embryo development and transportation and regulates the pregnancy success of mammals. Previous studies have indicated a molecular mechanism of lncRNAs in gene regulation and reproduction. However, little is known about the function of lncRNAs in the oviduct in modulating goat kidding numbers. Therefore, we combined RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) to map the expression profiles of the oviduct at the luteal phase from high- and low-fecundity goats. The results showed that 2023 differentially expressed mRNAs (DEGs) and 377 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DELs) transcripts were screened, and 2109 regulated lncRNA-mRNA pairs were identified. Subsequently, the genes related to reproduction (, , and ) and those associated with embryonic development and maturation (, ) were identified. KEGG analysis of the DEGs revealed that the GnRH- and prolactin-signaling pathways, progesterone-mediated oocyte maturation, and oocyte meiosis were related to reproduction. GSEA and KEGG analyses of the target genes of DELs demonstrated that several biological processes and pathways might interact with oviduct functions and the prolificacy of goats. Furthermore, the co-expression network analysis showed that XLOC_029185, XLOC_040647, and XLOC_090025 were the cis-regulatory elements of the DEGs , , and , respectively; these factors might be associated with the success of pregnancy and glucolipid metabolism. In addition, the , , , and were trans-regulated by lncRNAs, predominantly mediating oviductal transport to the embryo and energy metabolism. Our findings could pave the way for a better understanding of the roles of mRNAs and lncRNAs in fecundity-related oviduct function in goats.
输卵管与胚胎发育和运输相关，并调节哺乳动物的妊娠成功率。先前的研究已经表明lncRNAs在基因调控和生殖中的分子机制。然而，关于lncRNAs在输卵管中调节山羊产羔数的功能知之甚少。因此，我们结合RNA测序（RNA-seq）来绘制高繁殖力和低繁殖力山羊黄体期输卵管的表达谱。结果显示，筛选出2023个差异表达的mRNA（DEGs）和377个差异表达的lncRNAs（DELs）转录本，并鉴定出2109个调控的lncRNA-mRNA对。随后，鉴定出与生殖相关的基因（、和）以及与胚胎发育和成熟相关的基因（、）。对DEGs的KEGG分析表明，GnRH和催乳素信号通路、孕酮介导的卵母细胞成熟和卵母细胞减数分裂与生殖有关。对DELs靶基因的GSEA和KEGG分析表明，几个生物学过程和通路可能与输卵管功能和山羊的繁殖力相互作用。此外，共表达网络分析表明，XLOC_029185、XLOC_040647和XLOC_090025分别是DEGs、和的顺式调控元件；这些因子可能与妊娠成功和糖脂代谢有关。此外，、、、和受lncRNAs反式调控，主要介导输卵管向胚胎的运输和能量代谢。我们的研究结果可为更好地理解mRNA和lncRNAs在山羊繁殖力相关输卵管功能中的作用铺平道路。
