Comparative analysis of hypothalamus transcriptome between laying hens with different egg-laying rates.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Ma Z
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8187251 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:BackgroundChangshun green-shell laying hens are unique to the Guizhou Province, China, and have high egg quality but relatively low yield. Egg production traits are regulated by the hypothalamus-pituitary-ovary axis. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Thus, we conducted RNA sequencing of hypothalamic and pituitary tissues from low- and high-yielding Changshun green-shell laying hens to identify critical pathways and candidate genes involved in controlling the egg production rate.ResultsMore than 39 million clean reads per sample were obtained, and more than 82% were mapped to the Gallus gallus genome. Further analysis identified 1,817 and 1,171 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the hypothalamus and pituitary, respectively. Nineteen DEGs were upregulated in both the hypothalamus and pituitary of high-yielding chickens. The functions of these DEGs were mainly associated with ion transport or signal transduction. Gene set enrichment analysis revealed that the pathways enriched in the hypothalamus were mainly associated with gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) secretion, neurotransmitter release, and circadian rhythms. The pathways enriched in the pituitary were mainly associated with GnRH secretion, energy metabolism, and signal transduction. Five and four DEGs in the hypothalamus and pituitary, respectively, were selected randomly for qRT-PCR analysis. The expression trends determined via qRT-PCR were consistent with the RNA-seq results.ConclusionsThe current study identified 19 DEGs upregulated in both the hypothalamus and pituitary gland, which could provide an important reference for further studies on the molecular mechanisms underlying egg production in Changshun green-shell laying hens. In addition, enrichment analysis showed that GnRH secretion and signal transduction, especially neurotransmitter release, play crucial roles in the regulation of egg production.
| S-EPMC10734086 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Feed costs account for approximately 60 to 70% of the cost of poultry farming, and feed utilization is closely related to the profitability of the poultry industry. To understand the causes of the differences in feeding in Shan Partridge ducks, we compared the hypothalamus transcriptome profiles of 2 groups of ducks using RNA-seq. The 2 groups were: 1) low-residual feed intake (LRFI) group with low feed intake but high feed efficiency, and 2) high-residual feed intake (HRFI) group with high feed intake but low feed efficiency. We found 78 DEGs were enriched in 9 differential Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genome (KEGG) pathways, including neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction, GABAergic synapse, nitrogen metabolism, cAMP signaling pathway, calcium signaling pathway, nitrogen metabolism, tyrosine metabolism, ovarian steroidogenesis, and gluconeogenesis. To further identify core genes among the 78 DEGs, we performed protein-protein interaction and coexpression network analyses. After comprehensive analysis and experimental validation, 4 core genes, namely, glucagon (GCG), cholecystokinin (CCK), gamma-aminobutyric acid type A receptor subunit delta (GABRD), and gamma-aminobutyric acid type A receptor subunit beta1 (GABRB1), were identified as potential core genes responsible for the difference in residual feeding intake between the 2 breeds. We also investigated the level of cholecystokinin (CCK), neuropeptide Y (NPY), peptide YY (PYY), ghrelin, and glucagon-like peptide1 (GLP-1) hormones in the sera of Shan Partridge ducks at different feeding levels and found that there was a difference between the 2 groups with respect to GLP-1 and NPY levels. The findings will serve as a reference for future research on the feeding efficiency of Shan Partridge ducks and assist in promoting their genetic breeding.
| S-EPMC10823070 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundIn this study, we explored the characteristics and causes of freckle formation. We collected 15 normal and freckled eggs each for eggshell index testing and hypothesized that the structure and function of the uterus would have a direct effect on freckled egg production given that eggshells are formed in the uterus. To test this hypothesis, we collected uterine tissue from laying hens (418 days of age) that laid normal (Group C, n = 13) and freckled (Group T, n = 16) eggs for 7 consecutive days.ResultsWhen we examined the eggshell quality, we found that the L value was significantly lower (P < 0.05) in the freckled site group of freckled eggs compared to the normal egg group during the detection of blunt pole, equator, and sharp pole of the eggshell color. The a-values of the three positions were significantly higher (P < 0.05) in the freckled site group of freckled eggs, and the a-values of the blunt pole were significantly lower (P < 0.05) in the background site group of freckled eggs, compared to the normal egg group. The b-values were significantly higher (P < 0.05) at three locations in the freckled site group of freckled eggs compared to the normal egg group. During the detection of eggshell thickness, the blunt pole was significantly higher (P < 0.05) in the freckled egg site group of freckled eggs compared to the normal egg group, and there was no significant difference between the other groups (P > 0.05). There was no significant difference (P > 0.05) between the transverse and longitudinal diameters of the eggs in each group.We then performed histopathology and transcriptome analyses on the collected tissue. When compared with group C, uterine junctional epithelial cells in group T showed significant defects and cilia loss, and epithelial tissue was poorly intact. From transcriptomics, genes that met (|log2FC|) ≥ 1 and P < 0.05 criteria were screened as differentially expressed genes (DEGs). We identified a total of 136 DEGs, with 101 up- and 35 down-regulated genes from our RNA-seq data. DEGs identified by enrichment analyses, which were potentially associated with freckled egg production were: IFI6, CCL19, AvBD10, AvBD11, S100A12, POMC, and UCN3. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses showed that pathways were associated with immunoreaction and stress stimulation, e.g., complement activation, interleukin-1 cell reactions, viral responses, cell reactions stimulated by corticotropin releasing hormone, steroid hormone mediated signaling pathways, staphylococcal infections, B cell receptor signaling pathways, and natural killer cell mediated cytotoxicity.ConclusionsFrom these data, freckled areas deepen freckled eggshell color, but background areas are not affected. At the same time,we reasoned that freckle eggs may result from abnormal immune responses and impaired uterine functions induced by stress. Therefore, the uterus of laying hens in a state of stress and abnormal immune function can cause the appearance of freckled eggs.
| S-EPMC10696746 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundHigh egg producing hens (HEPH) show increased hypothalamic and pituitary gene expression related to hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis stimulation as well as increased in vitro responsiveness to gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) stimulation in the pituitary when compared to low egg producing hens (LEPH). Transcriptome analysis was performed on hypothalamus and pituitary samples from LEPH and HEPH to identify novel regulators of HPG axis function.ResultsIn the hypothalamus and pituitary, 4644 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between LEPH and HEPH, with 2021 genes up-regulated in LEPH and 2623 genes up-regulated in HEPH. In LEPH, up-regulated genes showed enrichment of the hypothalamo-pituitary-thyroid (HPT) axis. Beta-estradiol was identified as an upstream regulator regardless of tissue. When LEPH and HEPH samples were compared, beta-estradiol was activated in HEPH in 3 of the 4 comparisons, which correlated to the number of beta-estradiol target genes up-regulated in HEPH. In in vitro pituitary cell cultures from LEPH and HEPH, thyroid hormone pretreatment negatively impacted gonadotropin subunit mRNA levels in cells from both LEPH and HEPH, with the effect being more prominent in HEPH cells. Additionally, the effect of estradiol pretreatment on gonadotropin subunit mRNA levels in HEPH cells was negative, whereas estradiol pretreatment increased gonadotropin subunit mRNA levels in LEPH cells.ConclusionsUp-regulation of the HPT axis in LEPH and upstream beta-estradiol activation in HEPH may play a role in regulating HPG axis function, and ultimately ovulation rates. Thyroid hormone and estradiol pretreatment impacted gonadotropin mRNA levels following GnRH stimulation, with the inhibitory effects of thyroid hormone more detrimental in HEPH and estradiol stimulatory effects more prominent in LEPH. Responsiveness to thyroid hormone and estradiol may be due to desensitization to thyroid hormone and estradiol in LEPH and HEPH, respectively, due to up-regulation of the HPT axis in LEPH and of the HPG axis in HEPH. Further studies will be necessary to identify possible target gene desensitization mechanisms and elicit the regulatory role of the HPT axis and beta-estradiol on ovulation rates in turkey hens.
| S-EPMC7507666 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundSoya saponin (SS), an active compound in soybean meals, has been widely studied in the medical field. However, it was considered as an anti-nutritional factor in poultry diets. The objective of this experiment was to measure the effects of dietary SS using three dietary treatments on egg-laying performance and immune function of laying hens. Birds were fed a low soybean meal basal diet (CON), a low-SS diet (50 SS) containing 50 mg/kg SS, or a high-SS diet (500 SS) containing 500 mg/kg SS for 10 weeks. At the end of the 5th and 10th week of the trial, samples were collected for analysis.ResultsResults showed that with 50 mg/kg SS supplementation, the egg production rate, feed conversion ratio (FCR), and eggshell quality tended to be improved. Serum follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and Interleukin-4 (IL-4) levels were also elevated as well as the peripheral blood LPS stimulation index, the proportion of B lymphocytes, and antibody titer of bovine serum albumin (BSA). We also found that mRNA levels of follicle stimulating hormone receptor (FSHR) in ovarian, nuclear transcription factor kappa B (NF-κB), Transforming growth factor (TGF-β) and interferon γ (IFN-γ) in spleen were up-regulated at the end of the trial. Additionally, dietary 50 mg/kg SS improved the ileal flora via up-regulating the relative abundance of Lactobacillus, Romboutsia and Lactobacillus delbrueckii. Although the immune related indicators were improved with 500 mg/kg SS supplemented, it seemed to have a negative influence on the laying-performance. Specifically, serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and the ratio of IFN-γ to IL-4 were increased in the 500 SS group at the end of the trial. The mRNA levels of gonadotropin releasing hormone 1 (GnRH1) in Hypothalamus, the estrogen related receptor (ERR) in ovaries were downregulated as well as the egg production rate during the trial with 500 mg/kg SS supplemented.ConclusionsThe egg production performance was improved by dietary supplemented with 50 mg/kg SS via increasing ovarian FSHR transcription level and serum estrogen level. A beneficial shift in intestinal microflora was recorded, and the immune function of laying hens was also improved with 50 mg/kg SS supplementation. Surprisingly, the long-term supplementation of 500 mg/kg SS exerted a negative impact on the laying performance and physiological functions of the liver of laying hens.
| S-EPMC8729039 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The egg-laying rates of hens approximately 470 days of age exhibited a positive correlation to blood melatonin levels. The hens with an egg-laying rate <30%, 30~90% and ≥90% had blood melatonin levels of 5.8 ± 2.6, 74.0 ± 32.9 and 445.9 ± 115.3 ng/ml, respectively. When 10 mg of melatonin was implanted into the hens at 300, 360, 470 and 550 days of age, the egg-laying rates increased 4.63 ± 0.46%, 8.38 ± 1.45%, 4.93 ± 0.85% and 7.93 ± 0.91%, respectively, compared to that of the controls. Melatonin implantation in hens at 300-470 days of age was observed to enhance egg production and reduce the rate of appearance of sharpei eggs. Melatonin (10 mg) implanted in hens 360 days of age did not influence the blood levels of progesterone (P4) or the gene expression levels of ovarian follicle stimulating hormone receptor (FSHR), luteinizing hormone receptor (LHR), oestradiol receptor alpha (ERα), superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) or melatonin receptor 1 (MT1). In contrast, melatonin significantly elevated the serum oestradiol-17β (E2) content, down-regulated the gene expression of gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone receptor (GnIHR), and enhanced the expression of melatonin receptor 2 (MT2). This result indicates that the improved egg-laying rate by melatonin was the result of increased serum oestradiol and decreased ovarian GnIHR. These alterations may be mediated by MT2 activation.
| S-EPMC5180240 | biostudies-literature
Project description:A total of 565 miRNAs annotated in miRBase 20.0 were identified to be expressed in the liver of hen by high-throughput sequencing three biological reduplication libraries in juvenile and egg-laying hens, respectively. Compared with juvenile hen, 80 miRNAs (67 down-regulated and 13 up-regulated) were verified to be significant differential expression (SDE) in egg-laying physiological stage. Among these, miR-22-3p has the highest abundant expression, and miR-146b-5p has the highest fold-change. Additionally, 19 of the 71 novel miRNAs was significantly expressed. Furthermore, 648 putative target genes of the SDE miRNAs were obtained, and among these, FADS1, FADS2, ELOVL6, ACSL5, etc which are lipid metabolism related critical regulators are targeted by some SDE miRNAs. Gene Ontology (GO) analyses to the putative target genes of all the SDE miRNAs showed significantly enriched in Steroid biosynthesis, Glycerophospholipid metabolism, Biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, and PPAR signaling pathway (P ≤ 0.05). Meanwhile, GO terms are also significantly enriched in lipid related biological processes.
2017-02-09 | GSE74242 | GEO
Project description:Gynostemma pentaphyllum (GP), known as "southern ginseng", can reduce the blood pressure and blood lipid levels. In this study, 300 layer chicks of one day old were divided randomly into three groups (control group (base diet), high addition group (base diet with 1% GP), and low addition group (base diet with 0.5% GP)). After 29 weeks, the growth performance, egg quality, and serum index were determined. Additionally, liver mRNA was identified using RNA-seq to investigate the molecular mechanisms. The results indicated that the serum total cholesterol and triglycerides decreased significantly in the GP addition group. The addition of GP increased the egg weight, Haugh unit and redness (a*) of the egg yolk color, and reduced the yolk cholesterol concentration. Moreover, 95 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were screened between the control and GP addition group. GO and the KEGG analysis showed that the PPAR pathway was significantly enriched. Five fatty acid metabolism-related genes (FABP3, CYP7A1, ANKRD22, SCD1, and PCK1) were validated by qRT-PCR analysis, which confirmed the tendency of the expression. These DEGs in the PPAR pathway may be the key factors of GP affecting fatty acid metabolism. These results may provide a theoretical basis for further research and new insights into GP as a feed additive.
| S-EPMC8701024 | biostudies-literature
Project description:In this study, RNA-Seq technology was adopted to investigate the differences in expression profiles of the hepatic lipid metabolism-related genes and the associated pathways between juvenile and laying hens. RNA-Seq analysis was carried out to estimate total RNA harvested from the liver of juvenile hens (n = 3) and laying hens (n = 3). Compared with juvenile hens, 2574 differentially expressed (DE) genes (1487 down and 1087 up) with P ≤ 0.05 were obtained, and 955 of these genes were significantly DE (SDE) at a false discovery rate (FDR) of 0.05 and fold-change ≥ 2 in laying hens. There were 198 SDE novel genes (107 down-regulated and 91 up-regulated) (FDR ≤ 0.05) that were obtained from the transcriptome, and most of them were highly expressed. Moreover, 332 SDE isoforms were identified. Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment and KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes) pathway analysis showed that SDE genes were significantly associated with steroid biosynthesis, PPAR signaling pathway, biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, glycerophospholipid metabolism, three amino acid pathways, and pyruvate metabolism (P ≤ 0.05). The top significantly enriched GO terms included lipid biosynthesis, cholesterol and sterol metabolic, and oxidation reduction suggesting the principal lipogenesis in the liver of laying hens. This study suggests that the major changes at the level of transcriptome in laying hen liver are closely related to fat metabolism. Some highly differentially expressed uncharacterized novel genes and alternative splicing isoforms detected might also take part in lipid metabolism, though it needs investigation. Therefore, this study provides valuable information of mRNA of chicken liver, and deeper functional investigations on the mRNAs could help explore or provide new insights into molecular networks of lipid metabolism in chicken liver.
2016-01-08 | GSE70010 | GEO
Project description:High fearfulness in commercial laying hens can negatively affect production parameters and animal welfare. Brown and white egg layers differ in several behavioral characteristics, though reported differences in fearfulness are inconsistent. A meta-analysis was conducted to determine whether there are systematic differences in measures of fearfulness between brown and white layers. Twenty-three studies that examined either 1 or both of 2 behavioral tests were included: tonic immobility (TI) (longer duration = higher fearfulness, 16 studies) and novel object (NO) test (lower approach rate = higher fearfulness, 11 studies). The 2 tests were analyzed separately. TI analyses: A generalized linear mixed effect model (GLMM) with a lognormal distribution was fitted to describe the data with experiment nested in study as a random effect. Explanatory (X) variables were considered through backward selection, where potential X-variables included color (brown vs. white layers), decade (1980s, 2000s, 2020s), age (prelay vs. in lay), genetic stock (hybrid vs. grand-/parent stock), and methodology (back vs. side position). NO test analyses: univariable GLMMs with a beta distribution were fitted with approach rate as the Y-variable and color, decade, age, stock, or 2 methodological factors (test duration, single vs. group testing) as X-variables. Models were evaluated by assessing information criteria, residuals/random effect normality, significance of X-variables and model evaluation statistics (mean square prediction error, concordance correlation coefficient). TI duration was best explained by a color-by-decade interaction (P = 0.0006). Whites in the 1980s had longer TI durations (709.43 ± 143.88 s) than browns in the 1980s (282.90 ± 59.70 s), as well as in comparison to browns (208.80 ± 50.82 s) or whites (204.85 ± 49.60 s) in the 2020s. The NO approach rate was best explained by color (P ≤ 0.05 in 3 models), age (P < 0.05 in 3 models), and decade (P = 0.04). Whites had a higher approach rate (0.7 ± 0.07) than browns (0.5 ± 0.11), birds in lay a higher rate (0.8 ± 0.07) than birds prelay (0.4 ± 0.12), and approach rate for papers published in the 2000s (0.8 ± 0.09) was higher than in the 2020s (0.2 ± 0.12). The phylogenetic difference in the 1980s was no longer detectable after enforcing an upper limit on TI durations (10 min), as became common practice in later studies. Our findings suggest that phylogenetic differences in fearfulness and changes over time are test dependent, and this raises important questions and potential consequences for assessing hen welfare in commercial egg production.
| S-EPMC10123257 | biostudies-literature