Transcriptome Sequencing Reveals Pathways Related to Proliferation and Differentiation of Shitou Goose Myoblasts

SIMPLE SUMMARY: The Shitou goose, the largest cultivated goose breed in China, has high research value in meat traits. Muscle development is regulated by genes related to myoblast proliferation and differentiation. In this study, the mRNA and lncRNA expression profiles of Shitou goose myoblast in proliferation and differentiation were constructed by Illumina sequencing. A total of 1664 differentially expressed (DE) mRNAs and 244 DE-lncRNAs were identified between the two periods. Functional annotation showed that the DE-mRNAs and DE-lncRNAs were mainly enriched in the Wnt signaling pathway. These results provide new insights into the mechanism of muscle growth and development in large goose breeds. ABSTRACT: Chinese Shitou goose is a type of large goose with high meat yield. Understanding the genetic regulation of muscle development in Shitou goose would be beneficial to improve the meat production traits of geese. Muscle development is regulated by genes related to myoblast proliferation and differentiation. In this study, the RNA-seq method was used to construct the mRNA and lncRNA expression profiles of Shitou goose myoblasts and myotubes. A total of 1664 differentially expressed (DE) mRNAs and 244 DE-lncRNAs were identified. The alternative mRNA splicing in proliferation and differentiation stages was also analyzed. Notably, pathways enriched in DE-mRNAs, DE-splicing transcripts, and DE-lncRNAs all point to the Wnt signaling pathway, indicating that the Wnt signaling is a key regulatory pathway of muscle development in Shitou goose. We also constructed the interactive network of DE-lncRNAs and DE-mRNAs and revealed some key genes of lncRNAs regulating the proliferation and differentiation of myoblasts. These results provide new insights for the study of the muscle development of the Shitou goose.