Identification of Key Modules and Hub Genes Involved in Regulating the Color of Chicken Breast Meat Using WGCNA
Meat color is one of the most important economic traits in chickens. However, the gene network and regulatory mechanisms contributing to meat color traits in chickens remain largely unknown. In the present study, we performed weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) based on RNA-Seq data...
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MDPI AG
2023-07-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/14/2356 |
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| author | Xing Guo Hong Zhang Hao Wang Xin-Xin He Jiang-Xian Wang Wei Wei Meng Liu Jin-Mei Xu Ya-Nan Liu Run-Shen Jiang |
| author_facet | Xing Guo Hong Zhang Hao Wang Xin-Xin He Jiang-Xian Wang Wei Wei Meng Liu Jin-Mei Xu Ya-Nan Liu Run-Shen Jiang |
| author_sort | Xing Guo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Meat color is one of the most important economic traits in chickens. However, the gene network and regulatory mechanisms contributing to meat color traits in chickens remain largely unknown. In the present study, we performed weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) based on RNA-Seq datasets of 16 pectoralis major muscle samples from two yellow-feather chicken breeds to identify the modules and hub genes related to meat color in chickens. A total of 18,821 genes were used to construct the weighted gene co-expression network, and 29 co-expression gene modules were identified. Among these modules, five modules including blue, brown, steel blue, paleturquoise and orange modules were found to be significantly correlated with meat color traits. Furthermore, several genes within the association module involved in the regulation of mitochondrial activity (e.g., ATP5L, UQCR10 and COX7C) and lipid oxidation (e.g., CAV3, RBP4A and APOH) were identified as hub genes that may play a crucial role in the regulation of meat color. These results provide valuable information to improve our understanding of gene expression and regulation in relation to meat color traits and contribute to future molecular breeding for improving meat color in chickens. |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T01:22:14Z |
| publishDate | 2023-07-01 |
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| spelling | doaj.art-1d0176efccc748f9881bdcaa50e7bed92023-11-18T18:01:16ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152023-07-011314235610.3390/ani13142356Identification of Key Modules and Hub Genes Involved in Regulating the Color of Chicken Breast Meat Using WGCNAXing Guo0Hong Zhang1Hao Wang2Xin-Xin He3Jiang-Xian Wang4Wei Wei5Meng Liu6Jin-Mei Xu7Ya-Nan Liu8Run-Shen Jiang9College of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, ChinaMeat color is one of the most important economic traits in chickens. However, the gene network and regulatory mechanisms contributing to meat color traits in chickens remain largely unknown. In the present study, we performed weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) based on RNA-Seq datasets of 16 pectoralis major muscle samples from two yellow-feather chicken breeds to identify the modules and hub genes related to meat color in chickens. A total of 18,821 genes were used to construct the weighted gene co-expression network, and 29 co-expression gene modules were identified. Among these modules, five modules including blue, brown, steel blue, paleturquoise and orange modules were found to be significantly correlated with meat color traits. Furthermore, several genes within the association module involved in the regulation of mitochondrial activity (e.g., ATP5L, UQCR10 and COX7C) and lipid oxidation (e.g., CAV3, RBP4A and APOH) were identified as hub genes that may play a crucial role in the regulation of meat color. These results provide valuable information to improve our understanding of gene expression and regulation in relation to meat color traits and contribute to future molecular breeding for improving meat color in chickens.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/14/2356meat colorchickenWGCNAgene networkhub genes |
| spellingShingle | Xing Guo Hong Zhang Hao Wang Xin-Xin He Jiang-Xian Wang Wei Wei Meng Liu Jin-Mei Xu Ya-Nan Liu Run-Shen Jiang Identification of Key Modules and Hub Genes Involved in Regulating the Color of Chicken Breast Meat Using WGCNA Animals meat color chicken WGCNA gene network hub genes |
| title | Identification of Key Modules and Hub Genes Involved in Regulating the Color of Chicken Breast Meat Using WGCNA |
| title_full | Identification of Key Modules and Hub Genes Involved in Regulating the Color of Chicken Breast Meat Using WGCNA |
| title_fullStr | Identification of Key Modules and Hub Genes Involved in Regulating the Color of Chicken Breast Meat Using WGCNA |
| title_full_unstemmed | Identification of Key Modules and Hub Genes Involved in Regulating the Color of Chicken Breast Meat Using WGCNA |
| title_short | Identification of Key Modules and Hub Genes Involved in Regulating the Color of Chicken Breast Meat Using WGCNA |
| title_sort | identification of key modules and hub genes involved in regulating the color of chicken breast meat using wgcna |
| topic | meat color chicken WGCNA gene network hub genes |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/14/2356 |
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