Expression characteristics of pineal miRNAs at ovine different reproductive stages and the identification of miRNAs targeting the AANAT gene
Ran Di,
Qiu-Yue Liu,
Shu-Hui Song,
Dong-Mei Tian,
Jian-Ning He,
Ying Ge,
Xiang-Yu Wang,
Wen-Ping Hu,
Joram-Mwashigadi Mwacharo,
Zhang-Yuan Pan,
Jian-Dong Wang,
Qing Ma,
Gui-Ling Cao,
Hui-Hui Jin,
Xiao-Jun Liang,
Ming-Xing Chu
Affiliations
Ran Di
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Qiu-Yue Liu
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Shu-Hui Song
National Genomics Data Center & CAS Key Laboratory of Genome Sciences and Information, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and China National Center for Bioinformation
Dong-Mei Tian
National Genomics Data Center & CAS Key Laboratory of Genome Sciences and Information, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and China National Center for Bioinformation
Jian-Ning He
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Ying Ge
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Xiang-Yu Wang
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Wen-Ping Hu
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Joram-Mwashigadi Mwacharo
Small Ruminant Genomics, International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)
Zhang-Yuan Pan
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Jian-Dong Wang
Research Center of Grass and Livestock, NingXia Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences
Qing Ma
Research Center of Grass and Livestock, NingXia Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences
Gui-Ling Cao
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Hui-Hui Jin
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Xiao-Jun Liang
Research Center of Grass and Livestock, NingXia Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences
Ming-Xing Chu
Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Abstract Background Many recent studies have shown that miRNAs play important roles in the regulation of animal reproduction, including seasonal reproduction. The pineal gland is a crucial hub in the regulation of seasonal reproduction. However, little is known about the expression characteristics of pineal miRNAs in different reproductive seasons (anestrus and breeding season). Therefore, the expression profiles and regulatory roles of ovine pineal miRNAs were investigated during different reproductive stages using Solexa sequencing technology and dual luciferase reporter assays. Results A total of 427 miRNAs were identified in the sheep pineal gland. Significant differences in miRNA expression were demonstrated between anestrus and the breeding season in terms of the frequency distributions of miRNA lengths, number of expressed miRNAs, and specifically and highly expressed miRNAs in each reproductive stage. KEGG analysis of the differentially expressed (DE) miRNAs between anestrus and the breeding season indicated that they are significantly enriched in pathways related to protein synthesis, secretion and uptake. Furthermore, transcriptome analysis revealed that many target genes of DE miRNAs in the ribosome pathway showed relatively low expression in the breeding season. On the other hand, analyses combining miRNA-gene expression data with target relationship validation in vitro implied that miR-89 may participate in the negative regulation of aralkylamine N-acetyltransferase (AANAT) mRNA expression by targeting its 3’UTR at a unique binding site. Conclusions Our results provide new insights into the expression characteristics of sheep pineal miRNAs at different reproductive stages and into the negative regulatory effects of pineal miRNAs on AANAT mRNA expression.
