Enhanced early-life nutrition upregulates cholesterol biosynthetic gene expression and Sertoli cell maturation in testes of pre-pubertal Holstein bulls.

ABSTRACT: Well-fed prepuberal Holstein bulls had larger testes, earlier puberty, higher LH, testosterone and IGF-1, earlier and more proliferating and differentiating Sertoli cells, and greater sperm production potential. The objective was to determine effects of pre-pubertal nutrition on mRNA expression of testicular genes. Holstein bull calves were fed high or low diets (20 or 12% crude protein, respectively and 71.6 or 64.4% Total Digestible Nutrients) from 2 wk, castrated at 8, 16, 24 and 32 wk and testicular mRNA extracted and sequenced. Differential expression of genes mainly occurred at 16 and 24 wk. At 16 wk, functional analysis (DAVID) of DE mRNA revealed common biological processes including "cholesterol" and "fatty acid biosynthesis," with most genes (including HMGCR, HMGCS1, HSD17) upreg

SUBMITTER: Johnson C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6478835 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature