Project description:Single-nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA-seq) was used to profile the transcriptome of 7,318 nuclei in marmoset adult testis. This dataset includes two samples from two different individuals. This dataset is part of a larger evolutionary study of adult testis at the single-nucleus level (97,521 single-nuclei in total) across mammals including 10 representatives of the three main mammalian lineages: human, chimpanzee, bonobo, gorilla, gibbon, rhesus macaque, marmoset, mouse (placental mammals); grey short-tailed opossum (marsupials); and platypus (egg-laying monotremes). Corresponding data were generated for a bird (red junglefowl, the progenitor of domestic chicken), to be used as an evolutionary outgroup.
Project description:Single cell transcriptomic analyses are increasingly being employed to study human developmental processes in the gonad to advance our understanding of human gametogenesis. However, to date, these analyses have primarily focused on germ cells, while the somatic niche has been largely overlooked. Moreover, a comparative transcriptomic analysis of both female and male early gonad development on the single cell level is currently lacking. We performed single cell RNA-Seq on whole human fetal gonads from first and second trimester, both from male and female. We define gene expression profiles, which include novel marker genes, of major gonadal somatic cell types and validate them on the protein level. We identify the genetic signature of early human male rete cells, both in male and in female gonads. Overall, our study provides an in-depth molecular characterization of both male and female somatic cell types in early fetal gonads.
Project description:We used deep sequencing to characterize 3 families of sRNAs (piRNAs, miRNAs, and tRFs) present in Sus scrofa gonads and focused on the sRNA fraction present in both male and female gonads. Of the sequences detected in the testes, 2.6% of piRNAs, 9% of miRNAs, and 10% of tRFs were also present in the ovaries. Notably, the majority of the shared piRNAs mapped to the introns of ribosomal RNAs and were derived from clustered loci. In addition, the most abundant miRNAs present in the ovaries and testes are conserved and are involved in many biological processes such as the regulation of homeobox genes, the control of cell proliferation, and carcinogenesis. Unexpectedly, we detected a novel sRNA type, the tRFs, which are 30–36-nt RNA fragments derived from tRNA molecules, in gonads
Project description:We used deep sequencing to characterize 3 families of sRNAs (piRNAs, miRNAs, and tRFs) present in Sus scrofa gonads and focused on the sRNA fraction present in both male and female gonads. Of the sequences detected in the testes, 2.6% of piRNAs, 9% of miRNAs, and 10% of tRFs were also present in the ovaries. Notably, the majority of the shared piRNAs mapped to the introns of ribosomal RNAs and were derived from clustered loci. In addition, the most abundant miRNAs present in the ovaries and testes are conserved and are involved in many biological processes such as the regulation of homeobox genes, the control of cell proliferation, and carcinogenesis. Unexpectedly, we detected a novel sRNA type, the tRFs, which are 30–36-nt RNA fragments derived from tRNA molecules, in gonads Determination miRNA, piRNA and tRF expression in swine gonads
Project description:MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a highly conserved class of small RNAs which function in a sequence-specific manner to post-transcriptionally regulate expression of target genes. Tissue-specific miRNA expression studies have discovered numerous functions for miRNAs in various aspects of embryonic development, but a role for miRNAs in gonadal development and sex differentiation has not yet been reported. Using the chicken embryo as a vertebrate model, differential miRNA expression between male and female embryonic gonads, was analysed at three developmental stages (embryonic days (E) 5.5, E6.5 and E9.5), using custom-designed 4x2K CombiMatrix miRNA microarray. The aims of this study were to: 1-identify miRNAs differentialy expressed by sex; 2-identify sex-specific miRNAs; 3-analyse global changes in miRNA up-regulation in male versus female gonads before, during and after the histological onset of sexual differentiation. This study provides a basis for establishing whetehr miRNAs are involved in either initiating or regulating vertebrate gonadal sex differentiation. Keywords: miRNA, sex comparison, developmental stage comparison.