Polymorphisms of the , and fecundity genes in four Chinese sheep breeds.

Numerous studies on prolific sheep breeds have shown that the transforming growth factor beta (TGF- ) superfamily members, including bone morphogenetic protein receptor type 1B (), bone morphogenetic protein 15 () and growth differentiation factor 9 (), are the essential regulators of ovulation rate and litter size. In total, 11 known mutations (1 in , 6 in and 4 in ) are able to increase the ovulation rate and litter size, respectively. In this study, the genomic DNA was isolated from 512 high-prolificacy sheep (including the Small-tailed Han, Hu and Wadi sheep breeds) and 164 low-prolificacy sheep (Tan sheep), and genotyping of the specific mutations of the three fecundity-related genes was carried out by sequencing.

Effect of Upregulation of Transcription Factor TFDP1 Binding Promoter Activity Due to RBP4 g.36491960G>C Mutation on the Proliferation of Goat Granulosa Cells.

Retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4), a member of the lipocalin family, is a specific carrier of retinol (vitamin A) in the blood. Numerous studies have shown that RBP4 plays an important role in mammalian embryonic development and that mutations in RBP4 can be used for the marker-assisted selection of animal reproductive traits. However, there are few studies on the regulation of reproduction and high-prolificacy traits by RBP4 in goats.

Transcriptome Analysis Reveals Key miRNA-mRNA Pathways in Ovarian Tissues of Yunshang Black Goats With Different Kidding Numbers.

The granulosa cell (GC) is the basic functional unit of follicles, and it is important for promoting follicle growth and sex hormones, as well as growth factor secretion in the process of reproduction. A variety of factors influence granulocyte proliferation, yet there are still many gaps to be filled in target and non-coding RNA regulation. In our study, the differentially expressed (DE) mRNAs and miRNAs were detected by using RNA-seq, and we constructed a mRNA-miRNA network related to goat prolificacy.

Associations of and polymorphisms, and their expression levels, with Taihang chicken egg-production traits.

Egg production by hens is an important reproductive performance index in the poultry industry. To investigate the effects of the and genes on egg production in chicken, their mRNA expression and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) levels were investigated, and bioinformatics and egg-production association analyses were performed. Three SNPs (g.