Abstract
Fat traits are important in the chicken industry where there is a desire for high intramuscular fat (IMF) and low abdominal fat. However, there is limited knowledge on the relationship between the dynamic status of gene expression and the body fat deposition in chicken. Transcriptome data were obtained from breast muscle and abdominal fat of female chickens from nine developmental stages (from embryonic day 12 to hatched day 180). In total, 8,545 genes in breast muscle and 6,824 genes in abdominal fat were identified as developmentally dynamic genes. Weighted correlation network analysis was used to identify gene modules and the hub genes. Twenty-one hub genes were identified, e.g., ENSGALG00000041996, which represents a candidate for high IMF, and CREB3L1, which relates to low abdominal fat weight. The transcript factor L3MBTL1 and the transcript factor cofactors TNIP1, HAT1, and BEND6 related to both high breast muscle IMF and low abdominal fat weight. Our results provide a resource of developmental transcriptome profiles in chicken breast muscle and abdominal fat. The candidate genes can be used in the selection for increased IMF content and/or a decrease in abdominal fat weight which would contribute to the improvement of these traits.
Highlights
Lipid metabolism, regulation, and deposition play a very important role in relation to obesity in humans and in livestock production because of its close relationship with tasty and healthy food supply for humans
High intramuscular fat (IMF) content contributes to high meat quality, and as a result, increasing IMF deposition is a desirable goal in meattype chicken breeding
The fitted growth curves of breast muscle (BM) and abdominal fat (AF) for each of the three full-sib families during development are shown in Supplementary Figure S2, and both the breast muscle weight (BMW) and AF weight (AFW) follow a logistic regression (R2 > 0.99)
Summary
Regulation, and deposition play a very important role in relation to obesity in humans and in livestock production because of its close relationship with tasty and healthy food supply for humans. In the Chinese meat-type chicken industry, yellow-feathered dwarf chickens are used in one third of the breeding system. High intramuscular fat (IMF) content contributes to high meat quality, and as a result, increasing IMF deposition is a desirable goal in meattype chicken breeding. An increased IMF in muscle tissue will result in an increase in abdominal fat (AF) deposition in the chicken body (Jiang et al, 2017). Excess of AF influences animal welfare and becomes a waste product for human consumption after slaughter, resulting in considerable economic losses (Jiang et al, 2017). An increase of IMF and a reduction of AF deposition are important goals of meat-type chicken production
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