Identification of a differentially expressed gene PPP1CB between porcine Longissimus dorsi of Meishan and Large WhitexMeishan hybrids

Changes in expression of insulin signaling pathway genes by dietary fat source in growing-finishing pigs

This study investigated changes in gene expression by dietary fat source, i.e., beef tallow, soybean oil, olive oil, and coconut oil (each 3% in feed), in both male and female growing-finishing pigs. Real-time PCR was conducted on seven genes (insulin receptor; INSR, insulin receptor substrate; IRS, phosphatidylinositol (3,4,5)-triphosphate; PIP3, 3-phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase-1; PDK1, protein kinase B; Akt, forkhead box protein O1; FOXO1 and cGMP-inhibited 3', 5'-cyclic phosphodiesterase; PDE3) located upstream of the insulin signaling pathway in the longissimus dorsi muscle (LM) of pigs. The INSR, IRS, PIP3, and PDE3 genes showed significantly differential expression in barrow pigs. Expression of the PIP3 and FOXO1 genes was significantly different among the four dietary groups in gilt pigs. In particular, the PIP3 gene showed the opposite expression pattern between barrow and gilt pigs. These results show that dietary fat source affected patterns of gene expression according to animal gender. Further, the results indicate that the type of dietary fat affects insulin signaling-related gene expression in the LM of pigs. These results can be applied to livestock production by promoting the use of discriminatory feed supplies.

Identification of genes differentially expressed in myogenin knock-down bovine muscle satellite cells during differentiation through RNA sequencing analysis

BACKGROUND

The expression of myogenic regulatory factors (MRFs) consisting of MyoD, Myf5, myogenin (MyoG) and MRF4 characterizes various phases of skeletal muscle development including myoblast proliferation, cell-cycle exit, cell fusion and the maturation of myotubes to form myofibers. Although it is well known that the function of MyoG cannot be compensated for other MRFs, the molecular mechanism by which MyoG controls muscle cell differentiation is still unclear. Therefore, in this study, RNA-Seq technology was applied to profile changes in gene expression in response to MyoG knock-down (MyoGkd) in primary bovine muscle satellite cells (MSCs).

RESULTS

About 61-64% of the reads of over 42 million total reads were mapped to more than 13,000 genes in the reference bovine genome. RNA-Seq analysis identified 8,469 unique genes that were differentially expressed in MyoGkd. Among these genes, 230 were up-regulated and 224 were down-regulated by at least four-fold. DAVID Functional Annotation Cluster (FAC) and pathway analysis of all up- and down-regulated genes identified overrepresentation for cell cycle and division, DNA replication, mitosis, organelle lumen, nucleoplasm and cytosol, phosphate metabolic process, phosphoprotein phosphatase activity, cytoskeleton and cell morphogenesis, signifying the functional implication of these processes and pathways during skeletal muscle development. The RNA-Seq data was validated by real time RT-PCR analysis for eight out of ten genes as well as five marker genes investigated.

CONCLUSIONS

This study is the first RNA-Seq based gene expression analysis of MyoGkd undertaken in primary bovine MSCs. Computational analysis of the differentially expressed genes has identified the significance of genes such as SAP30-like (SAP30L), Protein lyl-1 (LYL1), various matrix metalloproteinases, and several glycogenes in myogenesis. The results of the present study widen our knowledge of the molecular basis of skeletal muscle development and reveal the vital regulatory role of MyoG in retaining muscle cell differentiation.

Cloning, sequence analysis and identification of a nonsense mutation-mediated mRNA decay of porcine GSTM2 gene

The glutathione S-transferase mu 2 gene (GSTM2) encodes a GST functioning in the elimination of electrophilic compounds and the regulation of cell growth. In this study, the sequence of porcine GSTM2 gene that contains the complete sequence encoding a protein of 218 amino acids was cloned. The deduced amino acid sequence shared 76%, 78% and 76% identity with that of human, mouse and rat, respectively. mRNA expression analysis showed that the porcine GSTM2 gene was expressed at a high level in liver and testis, at a medium level in longissimus dorsi muscle, adipose tissue, spleen and lung, at a low level in kidney, and at a very low level in heart and embryo. A nonsense mutation (CGA-->TGA) resulted from C27T substitution in the fifth exon to produce a premature translation termination codon was identified, and it was discovered that nonsense-mediated mRNA decay might have an effect on the regulation of porcine GSTM2 gene expression. This polymorphism was analyzed in Large White, Landrace, Meishan and Qingping pig populations using the Taq I-polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. The result showed that allele C had a higher frequency than allele T in each population.

Cloning and identification of porcine SMPX differentially expressed in F1 crossbreds and their parents

In order to investigate porcine heterosis on the molecular basis, Large White (L), a European purebred, and Meishan (M), a Chinese indigenous purebred, were hybridized directly and reciprocally to produce F1 hybrids, Large WhitexMeishan (LM) and MeishanxLarge White (ML) pigs. Using mRNA differential display, we found an expression sequence tag (EST) differentially expressed in F1 hybrids and their parents, designated as EST55, which was homologous to human and murine skeletal muscle protein (SMPX), and the full-length cDNA of porcine SMPX was cloned by the rapid amplification of cDNA end (RACE) method. Translation of the mRNA transcript revealed an open reading frame (ORF) of 86 amino acid residues encoding a nuclear location signal peptide, two overlapping casein kinase II phosphorylation sites and one N-glycosylation site with theoretical molecular weight of 9.3 kDa. Alignment analysis revealed that the deduced protein sequence shared 94%, 83% and 78% homology with that of its human, mouse and rat counterparts, respectively. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis showed that it was expressed predominantly in skeletal and heart muscles, whereas at a moderate level in backfat, spleen, stomach and uterus tissues. Two single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs), located in 5'- and 3'-untranslated region (UTR), respectively,were identified by PCR and sequencing. Phylogenetic tree and the secondary structure prediction were also performed. The possible relationship between porcine SMPX and heterosis was discussed.