Genetics and Genomics in Livestock Production and Disease Resistance

A special issue of Genes (ISSN 2073-4425). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Genetics and Genomics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 September 2023) | Viewed by 3297

Special Issue Editors

School of Agriculture, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, China
Interests: gene expression; gene function; genomic selection; bioinformatics analysis; gene regulation
College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
Interests: gene expression; gene function; genomic selection; bioinformatics analysis; gene regulation
Department of Livestock Management, Breeding and Genetics, The University of Agriculture Peshawar-Pakistan, Peshawar, Pakistan
Interests: gene expression; gene function; genomic selection; bioinformatics analysis; gene regulation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The application of genetics and genomics in livestock production has transformed the shape of livestock farming in the past decades. However, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done to achieve the optimum and maximum productivity from the livestock farming. The demand for animal products is rising with a growing global population. At the same time, livestock industries face the challenges imposed by various factors including climate changes, disease outbreaks, inbreeding, mutations, ill-planned cross breeding, etc. One of the most sustainable methods of increasing livestock productivity is the application of genetics and genomics techniques. Understanding the heritability, the molecular mechanisms and how to manipulate the genome to create the most efficient livestock species will benefit us all. This Special Issue in Genes on “Genetics and Genomics in Livestock production and disease resistance” will highlight how genomics technologies are paving the way to improve livestock systems. The Issue will provide an overview of recent developments in this field of research, including critical perspectives on current and upcoming challenges. This Issue will mostly focus on the application of quantitative genetics, molecular genetics and omics technologies such as transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics techniques for livestock production and disease resistance.

Dr. Dawei Wei
Dr. Sayed Haidar Abbas Raza
Dr. Rajwali Khan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Genes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • genetics
  • genomics
  • livestock production
  • disease resistance
  • RNA-Seq
  • biotechnology
  • transcriptomics

Published Papers (2 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

14 pages, 2974 KiB  
Article
CeRNA Network Reveals the Circular RNA Characterization in Goat Ear Fibroblasts Reprogramming into Mammary Epithelial Cells
by Jam Zaheer Ahmed Sahito, Shan Deng, Liangshan Qin, Lianggui Xiao, Dandan Zhang and Ben Huang
Genes 2023, 14(10), 1831; https://doi.org/10.3390/genes14101831 - 22 Sep 2023
Viewed by 857
Abstract
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a type of non-coding RNA that play a crucial role in the development and lactation of mammary glands in mammals. A total of 107 differentially expressed circRNAs (DE circRNAs) were found, of which 52 were up-regulated and 55 were [...] Read more.
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a type of non-coding RNA that play a crucial role in the development and lactation of mammary glands in mammals. A total of 107 differentially expressed circRNAs (DE circRNAs) were found, of which 52 were up-regulated and 55 were down-regulated. We also found that DE circRNA host genes were mainly involved in GO terms related to the development process of mammary epithelial cells and KEGG pathways were mostly related to mammary epithelial cells, lactation, and gland development. Protein network analysis found that DE circRNAs can competitively bind to miRNAs as key circRNAs by constructing a circRNA–miRNA–mRNA network. CircRNAs competitively bind to miRNAs (miR-10b-3p, miR-671-5p, chi-miR-200c, chi-miR-378-3p, and chi-miR-30e-5p) involved in goat mammary gland development, mammary epithelial cells, and lactation, affecting the expression of core genes (CDH2, MAPK1, ITGB1, CAMSAP2, and MAPKAPK5). Here, we generated CiMECs and systematically explored the differences in the transcription profile for the first time using whole-transcriptome sequencing. We also analyzed the interaction among mRNA, miRNA, and cirRNA and predicted that circRNA plays an important role in the maintenance of mammary epithelial cells. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Genetics and Genomics in Livestock Production and Disease Resistance)
Show Figures

Figure 1

12 pages, 2011 KiB  
Article
miR-33a Inhibits the Differentiation of Bovine Preadipocytes through the IRS2–Akt Pathway
by Wenzhen Zhang, Sayed Haidar Abbas Raza, Bingzhi Li, Bing Sun, Sihu Wang, Sameer D. Pant, Nouf S. Al-Abbas, Nehad A. Shaer and Linsen Zan
Genes 2023, 14(2), 529; https://doi.org/10.3390/genes14020529 - 20 Feb 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1413
Abstract
Several microRNAs (miRNAs) are known to participate in adipogenesis. However, their role in this process, especially in the differentiation of bovine preadipocytes, remains to be elucidated. This study was intended to clarify the effect of microRNA-33a (miR-33a) on the differentiation of bovine preadipocytes [...] Read more.
Several microRNAs (miRNAs) are known to participate in adipogenesis. However, their role in this process, especially in the differentiation of bovine preadipocytes, remains to be elucidated. This study was intended to clarify the effect of microRNA-33a (miR-33a) on the differentiation of bovine preadipocytes by cell culture, real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR (qPCR), Oil Red staining, BODIPY staining, and Western blotting. The results indicate that overexpression of miR-33a significantly inhibited lipid droplet accumulation and decreased the mRNA and protein expression of adipocyte differentiation marker genes such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ), sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 (SREBP1), and fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4). In contrast, the interference expression of miR-33a promoted lipid droplet accumulation and increased the expression of marker genes. Additionally, miR-33a directly targeted insulin receptor substrate 2 (IRS2) and regulated the phosphorylation level of serine/threonine kinase (Akt). Furthermore, miR-33a inhibition could rescue defects in the differentiation of bovine preadipocytes and the Akt phosphorylation level caused by small interfering IRS2 (si-IRS2). Collectively, these results indicate that miR-33a could inhibit the differentiation of bovine preadipocytes, possibly through the IRS2–Akt pathway. These findings might help develop practical means to improve the quality of beef. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Genetics and Genomics in Livestock Production and Disease Resistance)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop