Analysis of lncRNAs Expression Profiles in Hair Follicle of Hu Sheep Lambskin

Abstract

Lambskin of the Hu sheep exhibits high economic value due to its water-wave pattern. Wool curvature is the key factor of the pattern types and quality of lambskin, and it is formed by the interaction between dermal papilla cells and hair matrix cells in the hair follicle, which is regulated by various genes and signaling pathways. Herein, three full-sibling pairs of two-day-old healthy lambs (n = 6) were divided into a straight wool group (ST) and small waves group (SM) with three repetitions. RNA-seq was applied to determine the expression profile of mRNAs and lncRNAs in Hu sheep hair follicles. 25 differentially expressed mRNAs and 75 differentially expressed lncRNAs were found between SM and ST. FGF12, ATP1B4, and TCONS_00279168 were probably associated with hair follicle development. Then, Gene Ontology (GO) and KEGG enrichment analysis were implemented for the functional annotation of target genes of differentially expressed lncRNAs. The results showed that many genes, such as FGF12 and ATP1B4, were found enriched in PI3K-Akt signaling, MAPK signaling, and Ras signaling pathway associated with hair follicle growth and development. In addition, the interaction network of differentially expressed lncRNAs and mRNAs showed that a total of 6 differentially expressed lncRNAs were associated with 12 differentially expressed mRNAs, which may be as candidate mRNAs and lncRNAs. TCONS_00279168 may target ATP1B4 and FGF12 to regulate MAPK, PI3K-Akt, Ras signaling pathways involved in the sheep hair follicle development process. These results will provide the basis for exploring hair follicle development.

Using WGCNA (weighted gene co-expression network analysis) to identify the hub genes of skin hair follicle development in fetus stage of Inner Mongolia cashmere goat

“…Fibroblast growth factor (FGF) 21 knockout mice showed slower hair regeneration and had significantly fewer hair stems than wild-type mice, possibly related to the role of FGF21 as the key gene in the MAPK and phosphoinositide 3-kinase/Akt signaling pathways [23]. The importance of these signaling pathways in hair follicle development was also shown in a study of hair morphology of Hu wool, The Ras signaling pathway may also be involved in hair follicle development [24]. Hair follicles progress from the resting stage to the growth stage as a result of the rapid differentiation of hair follicle stem cells, related to activation of the mTOR signaling pathway [25].…”

Genome‐wide association study of fleece traits in Inner Mongolia Cashmere goats

“…Semaphorin 3D (SEMA3D) is associated with Axon guidance, which depends upon mechanosensory transduction by hair cells to percept sensory information (Scott et al 2019). FGF12 (fibroblast growth factor 12) is a member of the fibroblast growth factor family that regulates MAPK, PI3K-Akt, and Ras signaling pathways involved in the sheep hair follicle development (Lv et al 2020). The TNF signaling pathway is important hair follicle developmental pathway that affects the growth cycle of hair follicles (Pérez-Garijo et al 2013;Sulayman et al 2019).…”

PAPPA2 Promote the Proliferation of Dermal Papilla Cells in Hu Sheep (Ovis aries) by Regulating IGFBP5

“…Hu sheep, native to China, is a rare white lambskin breed, its lambskin has four pattern types: extremely curved (named "Curved" in this article), medium curved, little curved and straight [1] (named "Straight" in this article) (Figure 1). The formation of different pattern types is believed to be related to the length of fetal hair; at the beginning (110 d fetal age), the fetal hair just starts to grow.…”