mRNA Signatures in Peripheral White Blood Cells Predict Reproductive Potential in Beef Heifers at Weaning
Reproductive failure is a major contributor to inefficiency within the cow-calf industry. Particularly problematic is the inability to diagnose heifer reproductive issues prior to pregnancy diagnosis following their first breeding season. Therefore, we hypothesized that gene expression from the peri...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-02-01
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| Series: | Genes |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4425/14/2/498 |
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| author | Priyanka Banerjee Wellison J. S. Diniz Rachel Hollingsworth Soren P. Rodning Paul W. Dyce |
| author_facet | Priyanka Banerjee Wellison J. S. Diniz Rachel Hollingsworth Soren P. Rodning Paul W. Dyce |
| author_sort | Priyanka Banerjee |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Reproductive failure is a major contributor to inefficiency within the cow-calf industry. Particularly problematic is the inability to diagnose heifer reproductive issues prior to pregnancy diagnosis following their first breeding season. Therefore, we hypothesized that gene expression from the peripheral white blood cells at weaning could predict the future reproductive potential of beef heifers. To investigate this, the gene expression was measured using RNA-Seq in Angus–Simmental crossbred heifers sampled at weaning and retrospectively classified as fertile (FH, <i>n</i> = 8) or subfertile (SFH, <i>n</i> = 7) after pregnancy diagnosis. We identified 92 differentially expressed genes between the groups. Network co-expression analysis identified 14 and 52 hub targets. ENSBTAG00000052659, <i>OLR1</i>, <i>TFF2</i>, and <i>NAIP</i> were exclusive hubs to the FH group, while 42 hubs were exclusive to the SFH group. The differential connectivity between the networks of each group revealed a gain in connectivity due to the rewiring of major regulators in the SFH group. The exclusive hub targets from FH were over-represented for the CXCR chemokine receptor pathway and inflammasome complex, while for the SFH, they were over-represented for immune response and cytokine production pathways. These multiple interactions revealed novel targets and pathways predicting reproductive potential at an early stage of heifer development. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T08:46:58Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7679726585f343278d6385565db73a7e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4425 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T08:46:58Z |
| publishDate | 2023-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Genes |
| spelling | doaj.art-7679726585f343278d6385565db73a7e2023-11-16T20:43:48ZengMDPI AGGenes2073-44252023-02-0114249810.3390/genes14020498mRNA Signatures in Peripheral White Blood Cells Predict Reproductive Potential in Beef Heifers at WeaningPriyanka Banerjee0Wellison J. S. Diniz1Rachel Hollingsworth2Soren P. Rodning3Paul W. Dyce4Department of Animal Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USADepartment of Animal Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USADepartment of Animal Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USADepartment of Animal Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USADepartment of Animal Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USAReproductive failure is a major contributor to inefficiency within the cow-calf industry. Particularly problematic is the inability to diagnose heifer reproductive issues prior to pregnancy diagnosis following their first breeding season. Therefore, we hypothesized that gene expression from the peripheral white blood cells at weaning could predict the future reproductive potential of beef heifers. To investigate this, the gene expression was measured using RNA-Seq in Angus–Simmental crossbred heifers sampled at weaning and retrospectively classified as fertile (FH, <i>n</i> = 8) or subfertile (SFH, <i>n</i> = 7) after pregnancy diagnosis. We identified 92 differentially expressed genes between the groups. Network co-expression analysis identified 14 and 52 hub targets. ENSBTAG00000052659, <i>OLR1</i>, <i>TFF2</i>, and <i>NAIP</i> were exclusive hubs to the FH group, while 42 hubs were exclusive to the SFH group. The differential connectivity between the networks of each group revealed a gain in connectivity due to the rewiring of major regulators in the SFH group. The exclusive hub targets from FH were over-represented for the CXCR chemokine receptor pathway and inflammasome complex, while for the SFH, they were over-represented for immune response and cytokine production pathways. These multiple interactions revealed novel targets and pathways predicting reproductive potential at an early stage of heifer development.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4425/14/2/498beef heiferreproductive potentialtranscriptomeweaning |
| spellingShingle | Priyanka Banerjee Wellison J. S. Diniz Rachel Hollingsworth Soren P. Rodning Paul W. Dyce mRNA Signatures in Peripheral White Blood Cells Predict Reproductive Potential in Beef Heifers at Weaning Genes beef heifer reproductive potential transcriptome weaning |
| title | mRNA Signatures in Peripheral White Blood Cells Predict Reproductive Potential in Beef Heifers at Weaning |
| title_full | mRNA Signatures in Peripheral White Blood Cells Predict Reproductive Potential in Beef Heifers at Weaning |
| title_fullStr | mRNA Signatures in Peripheral White Blood Cells Predict Reproductive Potential in Beef Heifers at Weaning |
| title_full_unstemmed | mRNA Signatures in Peripheral White Blood Cells Predict Reproductive Potential in Beef Heifers at Weaning |
| title_short | mRNA Signatures in Peripheral White Blood Cells Predict Reproductive Potential in Beef Heifers at Weaning |
| title_sort | mrna signatures in peripheral white blood cells predict reproductive potential in beef heifers at weaning |
| topic | beef heifer reproductive potential transcriptome weaning |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4425/14/2/498 |
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