Dynamic DNA methylation of ovaries during pubertal transition in gilts
Xiaolong Yuan,
Shaopan Ye,
Zitao Chen,
Xiangchun Pan,
Shuwen Huang,
Zhonghui Li,
Yuyi Zhong,
Ning Gao,
Hao Zhang,
Jiaqi Li,
Zhe Zhang
Affiliations
Xiaolong Yuan
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Shaopan Ye
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Zitao Chen
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Xiangchun Pan
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Shuwen Huang
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Zhonghui Li
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Yuyi Zhong
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Ning Gao
State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, North Third Road, Guangzhou Higher Education Mega Center
Hao Zhang
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Jiaqi Li
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Zhe Zhang
National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Agro-Animal Genomics and Molecular Breeding, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University
Abstract Background In female mammals, the initiation of puberty, coupling with the dramatically morphological changes in ovaries, indicates the sexual and follicular maturation. Previous studies have suggested that the disrupted DNA methylation results in the delayed puberty. However, to date, the changes in ovarian methylomes during pubertal transition have not been investigated. In this study, using gilts as a pubertal model, the genome-wide DNA methylation were profiled to explore their dynamics during pubertal transition across Pre-, In- and Post-puberty. Results During pubertal transition, the follicles underwent maturation and luteinization, coupled with the significant changes in the mRNA expression of DNMT1 and DNMT3a. DNA methylation levels of In-puberty were higher than that of Pre- and Post-puberty at the locations of genes and CpG islands (CGIs). Analysis of the DNA methylation changes identified 12,313, 20,960 and 17,694 differentially methylated CpGs (DMCs) for the comparisons of Pre- vs. In-, In vs. Post-, and Pre- vs. Post-puberty, respectively. Moreover, the CGIs, upstream and exonic regions showed a significant underrepresentation of DMCs, but the CGI shores, CGI shelves, intronic, downstream and intergenic regions showed a significant overrepresentation of DMCs. Furthermore, biological functions of these methylation changes enriched in PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, GnRH signaling pathway, and Insulin secretion, and the mRNA expressions of several genes of these signaling pathway, including MMP2, ESR1, GSK3B, FGF21, IGF1R, and TAC3, were significantly changed across Pre-, In- and Post-puberty in ovaries. Conclusions During pubertal transition in gilts, the DNA methylation changes of ovaries were likely to affect the transcription of genes related to PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, GnRH signaling pathway, and Insulin secretion. These observations can provide new insight into the epigenetic mechanism of follicular and sexual maturation during pubertal transition in mammals.
