RNA-seq profiling of skin in temperate and tropical cattle
Skin is a major thermoregulatory organ in the body controlling homeothermy, a critical function for climate adaptation. We compared genes expressed between tropical- and temperate-adapted cattle to better understand genes involved in climat...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Korean Society of Animal Sciences and Technology
2020-03-01
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| Series: | Journal of Animal Science and Technology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.ejast.org/archive/view_article?pid=jast-62-2-141 |
| Summary: | Skin is a major thermoregulatory organ in the body controlling homeothermy, a
critical function for climate adaptation. We compared genes expressed between
tropical- and temperate-adapted cattle to better understand genes involved in
climate adaptation and hence thermoregulation. We profiled the skin of
representative tropical and temperate cattle using RNA-seq. A total of
214,754,759 reads were generated and assembled into 72,993,478 reads and were
mapped to unique regions in the bovine genome. Gene coverage of unique regions
of the reference genome showed that of 24,616 genes, only 13,130 genes (53.34%)
displayed more than one count per million reads for at least two libraries and
were considered suitable for downstream analyses. Our results revealed that of
255 genes expressed differentially, 98 genes were upregulated in
tropically-adapted White Fulani (WF; Bos indicus) and 157 genes
were down regulated in WF compared to Angus, AG (Bos taurus).
Fifteen pathways were identified from the differential gene sets through gene
ontology and pathway analyses. These include the significantly enriched melanin
metabolic process, proteinaceous extracellular matrix, inflammatory response,
defense response, calcium ion binding and response to wounding. Quantitative PCR
was used to validate six representative genes which are associated with skin
thermoregulation and epithelia dysfunction (mean correlation 0.92;
p < 0.001). Our results contribute to identifying genes
and understanding molecular mechanisms of skin thermoregulation that may
influence strategic genomic selection in cattle to withstand climate adaptation,
microbial invasion and mechanical damage. |
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| ISSN: | 2672-0191 2055-0391 |