Alteration of Hepatic Gene Expression along with the Inherited Phenotype of Acquired Fatty Liver in Chicken.

Yonghong Zhang,Huanxian Cui,Maiqing Zheng,Jie Wang,Jie Wen,Qinghe Li,Guiping Zhao,Ranran Liu,Zhen Liu

doi:10.3390/genes9040199

Yonghong Zhang, Huanxian Cui + Show 7 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/genes9040199

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Abstract

Fatty liver is a widespread disease in chickens that causes a decrease in egg production and even death. The characteristics of the inherited phenotype of acquired fatty liver and the molecular mechanisms underlying it, however, are largely unknown. In the current study, fatty liver was induced in 3 breeds by a high-fat (HF) diet and a methionine choline-deficient (MCD) diet. The results showed that the dwarf Jingxing-Huang (JXH) chicken was more susceptible to fatty liver compared with the layer White Leghorns (WL) and local Beijing-You (BJY) breeds. In addition, it was found that the paternal fatty livers induced by HF diet in JXH chickens were inherited. Compared to birds without fatty liver in the control group, both offsprings and their sires with fatty livers in the paternal group exhibited altered hepatic gene expression profiles, including upregulation of several key genes involved in fatty acid metabolism, lipid metabolism and glucose metabolism (ACACA, FASN, SCD, ACSL5, FADS2, FABP1, APOA4 and ME1). This study uniquely revealed that acquired fatty liver in cocks can be inherited. The hepatic gene expression profiles were altered in chickens with the inherited phenotype of acquired paternal fatty liver and several genes could be candidate biomarkers.

Highlights

Fatty liver, known as fatty liver syndrome or fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome, is a metabolic disease which is likely caused by nutritional, hormonal, environmental and genetic factors [1,2,3,4,5]. it is widespread in laying hens [6], fatty liver is often ignored because its symptoms are not as obvious as those of infectious diseases
The frequency of occurrence of fatty liver in JXH was higher among the chickens fed with the HF diet (41.9%) and methionine choline-deficient (MCD) diet (38.7%) than those fed with the basal diet (25%)
In White Leghorns (WL) chickens, the fatty liver incidence was increased by the HF diet, but not by the MCD diet, while in BJY chickens, fatty liver incidence was moderately increased by the HF and MCD diets (33.33%)

Summary

Introduction

Known as fatty liver syndrome or fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome, is a metabolic disease which is likely caused by nutritional, hormonal, environmental and genetic factors [1,2,3,4,5]. It is widespread in laying hens [6], fatty liver is often ignored because its symptoms are not as obvious as those of infectious diseases. Lipid homeostasis is disrupted when disorders of metabolic pathways occur, such as lipid absorption, lipid synthesis, β-oxidation and lipoprotein transport, during which lipid accumulates excessively in the liver, thereby leading to fatty liver [8,9]

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