Transcriptional regulation of milk fat synthesis in dairy cattle

Abstract

With the rapid development of China's economy and dairy industry, the people’s requirement for milk quality is increasing. Milk fat is a crucial indicator of milk quality. Therefore, exploring the regulatory mechanisms of milk fat synthesis is important. Depending on chain length, milk fatty acids are produced through two mechanisms: de novo synthesis in mammary epithelial cells and uptake from circulating blood. Milk fat synthesis involves many enzymes, proteins and regulatory factors and is a complex and dynamic process. In this paper, recent progress in the transcriptional regulation of milk fat synthesis is reviewed with a focus on the de novo synthesis of fatty acids, the uptake and transport of preformed fatty acids, fatty acid desaturation, triglyceride formation and lipid droplet secretion. In particular, the recently discovered regulatory roles of noncoding RNA are emphasized. Our paper will provide a reference for future research on milk fat derived from dairy cows.

Keywords

• Milk
• Mammary gland
• Milk fat synthesis
• Gene network