Developmental stage-specific transcriptomics of the hypothalamus-pituitary-testis axis reveals gene networks governing testicular maturation in Xianghuang chickens.

ABSTRACT: Sexual maturity significantly impacts poultry production efficiency, yet data on testicular development and regulatory mechanisms in indigenous breeds remain limited. In this study, we examined Xianghuang chickens, a indigenous early-maturing breed, to investigate the hypothalamus-pituitary-testis (HPT) axis. Hypothalamus, pituitary, and testis tissues were collected at 80 and 120 days post-hatch (dph) for analysis. Results showed that testicular weight and index were significantly higher in 120dph compared to 80dph chickens. Histologically, the testes at 120dph contained multi-layered spermatocytes and mature sperm while the testes at 80dph only had 1-2 layers of spermatocytes. Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis of transcriptome data clustered gene sets into 11 modules including

SUBMITTER: Ouyang Q 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12441702 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature