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Luo X, Guo J, Zhang J, Ma Z, Li H. Overview of chicken embryo genes related to sex differentiation. PeerJ 2024; 12:e17072. [PMID: 38525278 PMCID: PMC10959104 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.17072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Accepted: 02/18/2024] [Indexed: 03/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Sex determination in chickens at an early embryonic stage has been a longstanding challenge in poultry production due to the unique ZZ:ZW sex chromosome system and various influencing factors. This review has summarized the genes related to the sex differentiation of chicken early embryos (mainly Dmrt1, Sox9, Amh, Cyp19a1, Foxl2, Tle4z1, Jun, Hintw, Ube2i, Spin1z, Hmgcs1, Foxd1, Tox3, Ddx4, cHemgn and Serpinb11 in this article), and has found that these contributions enhance our understanding of the genetic basis of sex determination in chickens, while identifying potential gene targets for future research. This knowledge may inform and guide the development of sex screening technologies for hatching eggs and support advancements in gene-editing approaches for chicken embryos. Moreover, these insights offer hope for enhancing animal welfare and promoting conservation efforts in poultry production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaolu Luo
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, Guangdong, China
| | - Jiancheng Guo
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, Guangdong, China
| | - Jiahang Zhang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, Guangdong, China
| | - Zheng Ma
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, Guangdong, China
| | - Hua Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, Guangdong, China
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Hou Y, Peng J, Hong L, Wu Z, Zheng E, Li Z. Gender Control of Mouse Embryos by Activation of TLR7/8 on X Sperm via Ligands dsRNA-40 and dsRNA-DR. Molecules 2024; 29:262. [PMID: 38202845 PMCID: PMC10780660 DOI: 10.3390/molecules29010262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2023] [Revised: 12/27/2023] [Accepted: 12/29/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Gender control technologies are promising for enhancing the production efficiency of the farm animal industry, and preventing sex-linked hereditary diseases in humans. It has been shown that the X sperm of mammalian animals specifically expresses X-chromosome-derived toll-like receptor 7/8 (TLR7/8), and the activation of TLR7/8 on the X sperm by their agonist, R848, can separate X and Y sperm via the specific inhibition of X sperm motility. The use of R848-preselected sperm for fertilization resulted in sex-ratio-skewed embryos or offspring. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether two other TLR7/8 ligands, double-stranded RNA-40 (dsRNA-40) and double-stranded RNA-DR (dsRNA-DR), are also effective in the separation of mouse X and Y sperm and the subsequent generation of gender-ratio-skewed in vitro fertilization (IVF) embryos. Our results indicated that cholesterol modification significantly enhances the transfection of dsRNA-40 and dsRNA-DR into sperm cells. dsRNA-40 and dsRNA-DR incubation with mouse sperm could separate X and Y sperm by the specific suppression of X sperm motility by decreasing its ATP level and mitochondrial activity. The use of a dsRNA-40- or dsRNA-DR-preselected upper layer of sperm, which predominantly contains high-motility Y sperm, for IVF caused a male-biased sex ratio shift in resulting embryos (with 65.90-74.93% of embryos being male). This study develops a simple new method for the efficient separation of mammalian X and Y sperm, enabling the selective production of male or female progenies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yunfei Hou
- National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- State Key Laboratory of Swine and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- National and Local Joint Engineering Research Center for Livestock and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Department of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Jingfeng Peng
- National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- State Key Laboratory of Swine and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- National and Local Joint Engineering Research Center for Livestock and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Department of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Linjun Hong
- National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- State Key Laboratory of Swine and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- National and Local Joint Engineering Research Center for Livestock and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Department of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Zhenfang Wu
- National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- State Key Laboratory of Swine and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- National and Local Joint Engineering Research Center for Livestock and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Department of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Guangdong Provincial Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agricultural Science and Technology, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Enqin Zheng
- National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- State Key Laboratory of Swine and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- National and Local Joint Engineering Research Center for Livestock and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Department of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Zicong Li
- National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- State Key Laboratory of Swine and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- National and Local Joint Engineering Research Center for Livestock and Poultry Breeding Industry, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Department of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Guangdong Provincial Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agricultural Science and Technology, Guangzhou 510642, China
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