Project description:We identified the differentially expressed miRNAs in Landes goose liver after overfeeding for 21 days using high-throughput sequencing. We obtained 21453493 and 21525819 clean reads in normal liver and fatty liver by high-throughput sequencing, respectively. Of these clean reads, we respectively gained 9244896 and 9847086 miRNAs sequences in two groups by filtering the known non-miRNA reads, such as rRNA, tRNA, snRNA, and snoRNA by screening against ncRNA deposited in the GenBank and Rfam databases. These findings provided insights into the expression profiles of miRNAs in goose liver, and deepened our understanding of miRNAs in hepatic steatosis of geese.
Project description:Lion-head goose is the only large goose species in China, and it was one of the largest goose species in the world. Our previous study firstly reported a chromosome-level genome assembly of Lion-head goose (Anser cygnoides), a native breed in South China, through the combination of PacBio, Bionano, and Hi-C technologies. The fat content of foie gras is augmented during its preparation due to the special feeding regimen. Lion-head geese have a strong tolerance of massive energy intake and show a priority of fat accumulation in liver tissue. In this study, we studied for the first time the important differential genes that regulate fatty liver in Lion-head goose. After high-intake feeding, the fatty livers of Lion-head geese were distinctly characterized. The revelation of gene regulation is an important basis for the study of liver development and molecular characteristics for the Lion-head goose. To analyze the excellent fatty liver performance of Lion-head goose at the molecular level, we performed whole transcriptome analysis by high-throughput RNA sequencing to analyze the key regulatory genes that determine the fatty livers in high-intake feeding group compared with the normal livers in normally-fed Lion-head geese. We identified 716 differentially expressed mRNAs, 145 differentially expressed circRNAs, and 39 differentially expressed lncRNAs in the fatty livers in high-intake feeding group compared with the normal livers in normally-fed Lion-head geese, including upregulated and downregulated genes, respectively. GO enrichment analysis showed that these genes were significantly enriched in molecular function, involved in extracellular regions, DNA-binding transcription factor activity, extracellular matrix, heme binding and other life activities. We chose differentially expressed genes involved in either upregulation or downregulation, and we additionally confirmed the accuracy of sequencing at the RNA level. In summary, our research suggested that these differentially expressed genes may play important roles in fatty liver development in Lion-head goose. However, the functions and mechanisms of these significantly differentially expressed genes should be investigated in future studies.
