Project description:Bene expression profile of Angus bovine testis tissue at 2, 4 and 8 weeks of age using Affymetrix Bovine GeneChip Experiment Overall Design: Samples obtained from Angus bull calves at 2, 4 and 8 weeks of age. Two replicates at each age, 6 total samples.
Project description:Exposure to intrauterine heat stress during late gestation affects offspring performance into adulthood. However, underlying mechanistic links between thermal insult in fetal life and postnatal outcomes are not completely understood. Utilizing Reduced Representation Bisulfite Sequencing, this study evaluated DNA methylation of liver and mammary gland of bull calves and heifers that were gestated under maternal conditions of heat stress or cooling, i.e., in utero heat stressed (HT) vs. in utero cooled (CL). Liver samples from bull calves (CT = 5 and HT = 4) were collected at birth while mammary gland samples from heifers (CT = 3 and HT = 3) were collected during their first lactation.
Project description:Wandong cattle are an autochthonous Chinese breed used extensively for beef production. The breed tolerates extreme weather conditions and raw feed and are resistant to tick-borne diseases. However, the genetic basis of testis development and sperm production as well as breeding management is not well established in local cattle. In this study, we performed total RNA-Seq and comprehensively analyzed the circ-RNA expression profiling of the testes samples of six bulls at 3 years and 3 months of developmental age. In total, 17 013 circ-RNAs were identified, of which 681 circRNAs (P-adjust < 0.05) were differentially expressed (DE). Among these DE circ-RNAs, 579 were upregulated and 103 were downregulated in calf and bull testes. The Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses revealed that the identified target genes were classified into three broad functional categories, including biological process, cellular component, and molecular function, and were enriched in the lysine degradation, cell cycle, and cell adhesion molecule pathways.
Project description:Enhanced nutrition during the early calfhood period has been shown to hasten the onset of puberty in bull calves. The hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian biochemical signalling axis regulates reproductive development in bulls, with the dynamics of gonadotropin pulsatility within the anterior pituitary gland, in particular, central to final sexual maturity. However, the precise molecular mechanisms regulating the influence of metabolic status on this signalling axis in bull calves is yet to be fully elucidated. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of an enhanced plane of nutrition during early life, up to 12 weeks of age, on the anterior pituitary gland proteome of bull calves. Bull calves were offered either a high or moderate plane of nutrition.
Project description:Enhanced nutrition during the early calfhood period has been shown to hasten the onset of puberty in bull calves. The hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian biochemical signalling axis regulates reproductive development in bulls, with the dynamics of the arcuate nucleus region of the hypothalamus, in particular, central to mediating the relationship between metabolic status with reproductive development. However, the precise molecular mechanisms regulating the influence of metabolic status on this signalling axis in bull calves is yet to be fully elucidated. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of an enhanced plane of nutrition during early life, up to 12 weeks of age, on the proteomic profile of the arcuate nucleus of bull calves. Bull calves were offered either a high or moderate plane of nutrition.
Project description:Bovine rotavirus (BRV) and bovine coronavirus (BCV) infect intestinal villous epithelium in young cattle. A surgical model was adapted for neonatal calves in which a region of the jejunum was isolated from the digestive tract but lymph drainage, enervation and blood flow were maintained. Replicate sections of intestine (loops) were infected with either BRV or BCV and adjacent segments were injected with phosphate-buffered saline. Tissues were collected 18 hours post-infection. Four animals were used for BRV infection studies, and three animals were used for BCV infection studies. Microarray analyses provided a global evaluation of host gene expression patterns following BRV and BCV infection and changes in gene expression were validated by qRT-PCR analyses.
