Project description:The Chinese forest musk deer (FMD; Moschus berezovskii) is an endangered artiodactyl mammal. Musk secreted by the musk gland of male FMD has extremely high economic and medicinal value. At present, little is known about the development of musk glands and the molecular mechanism of musk secretion. In the present research, using snRNA-seq and snATAC-seq association analysis performed on musk glands of forest musk deer, coupled with several bioinformatics analyses, the dynamic transcriptional cell atlas of musk gland development was revealed and the genes and transcription factors affecting musk secretion were determined. Based on uniform manifold approximation and projection (UMAP) analysis, we identified 12 cell types from musk glands, including two different acinar cells (clusters 0 and 10). In addition, the expression of core target genes and core transcription factors was verified by fluorescence in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry. Combined with weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), we obtained a deeper biological understanding of the relationship between core transcription factors, differentially expressed genes and musk secretion related pathways. This study lays a foundation for improving musk yield and meeting market demand. In the meantime, it also contributes to reducing the hunting and poaching of wild forest musk deer, protecting forest musk deer resources and maintaining ecological balance.
Project description:ARDS-mediated lung transcriptome alterations were identified in forest musk deer. Moreover, multiple transcripts/genes involved in lung development and lung defense responses to bacteria/viruses/fungi in ARDS were filtered out in forest musk deer.
2022-10-19 | GSE191259 | GEO
Project description:Musk Deer Microbiota
| PRJNA541776 | ENA
Project description:microbiota of Chinese forest musk deer
Project description:Pneumonia can seriously threaten the life of forest musk deer (an endangered species). To gain a comprehensive understanding of pneumonia pathogenesis in forest musk deer, iTRAQ-based proteomics analysis was performed in diseased (Phe group) and normal (Ctrl group) lung tissues of forest musk deer that died of pneumonia. Results showed that 355 proteins were differentially expressed (fold change ≥ 1.2 and Q < 0.05) in Phe vs Ctrl experiments. GO/KEGG annotation and enrichment analyses showed that dysregulated proteins might play vital roles in bacterial infection and immunity. Given the close association of bacterial infection and pneumonia, 32 dysregulated proteins related to Staphylococcus aureus infection, bacterial invasion of epithelial cells, and pathogenic Escherichia coli infection were screened out. Among these 32 proteins, 13 proteins were mapped to the bovine genome. Given the close phylogenetic relationships of forest musk deer and bovine, the protein-protein interaction networks of the above-ment
Project description:Inappropriate cross talk between mammals and their gut microbiota may trigger intestinal inflammation and drive extra-intestinal immune-mediated diseases. Studies with germ-free or gnotobiotic animals represent the gold standard for research on bacterial-host interaction but they are not readily accessible to the wide scientific community. We aimed at refining a protocol that in a robust manner would deplete murine intestinal microbiota and prove to have significant biologic validity. Previously published protocols for depleting mice of their intestinal microbiota by administering broad-spectrum antibiotics in drinking water were difficult to reproduce. We show that twice daily delivery of antibiotics by gavage depleted mice of their cultivable fecal microbiota and reduced the fecal bacterial DNA load by approximately 400 fold while ensuring the animals’ health. Mice subjected to the protocol for 17 days displayed enlarged ceca, reduced Peyer’s patches and small spleens. Antibiotic treatment significantly reduced the expression of antimicrobial factors and altered the expression of 517 genes in total in the colonic epithelium. Genes involved in cell cycle were significantly altered concomitant with reduced epithelial proliferative activity in situ assessed by Ki-67 expression, suggesting that commensal microbiota drives cellular proliferation in colonic epithelium. We present a robust protocol for depleting mice of their cultivatable intestinal microbiota with antibiotics by gavage and show that the biological effect of this depletion is phenotypic characteristics and epithelial gene expression profile similar to those of germ-free mice. Comparison of genome-wide gene expression of colon intestinal epithelial cells from mice subjected to microbiota depletion protocol against to control mice.