Sexually Dimorphic Transcriptomic Changes of Developing Fetal Brain Reveal Signaling Pathways and Marker Genes of Brain Cells in Domestic Pigs

In this study, transcriptomic changes of the developing brain of pig fetuses of both sexes were investigated on gestation days (GD) 45, 60 and 90. Pig fetal brain grows rapidly around GD60. Consequently, gene expression of the fetal brain was distinctly different on GD90 compared to that of GD45 and...

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Main Authors: Monica Strawn, Joao G. N. Moraes, Timothy J. Safranski, Susanta K. Behura
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-09-01
Series:Cells
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/10/9/2439
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spelling doaj-8fc727ee5aab42cf96097acc3ca92d922021-09-25T23:53:12ZengMDPI AGCells2073-44092021-09-01102439243910.3390/cells10092439Sexually Dimorphic Transcriptomic Changes of Developing Fetal Brain Reveal Signaling Pathways and Marker Genes of Brain Cells in Domestic PigsMonica Strawn0Joao G. N. Moraes1Timothy J. Safranski2Susanta K. Behura3Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USADivision of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USADivision of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USADivision of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USAIn this study, transcriptomic changes of the developing brain of pig fetuses of both sexes were investigated on gestation days (GD) 45, 60 and 90. Pig fetal brain grows rapidly around GD60. Consequently, gene expression of the fetal brain was distinctly different on GD90 compared to that of GD45 and GD60. In addition, varying numbers of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in the male brain compared to the female brain during development. The sex of adjacent fetuses also influenced gene expression of the fetal brain. Extensive changes in gene expression at the exon-level were observed during brain development. Pathway enrichment analysis showed that the ionotropic glutamate receptor pathway and <i>p53</i> pathway were enriched in the female brain, whereas specific receptor-mediated signaling pathways were enriched in the male brain. Marker genes of neurons and astrocytes were significantly differentially expressed between male and female brains during development. Furthermore, comparative analysis of gene expression patterns between fetal brain and placenta suggested that genes related to ion transportation may play a key role in the regulation of the brain-placental axis in pig. Collectively, the study suggests potential application of pig models to better understand influence of fetal sex on brain development.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/10/9/2439fetal sexgene regulationbrain developmentplacentaswine
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Monica Strawn
Joao G. N. Moraes
Timothy J. Safranski
Susanta K. Behura
spellingShingle Monica Strawn
Joao G. N. Moraes
Timothy J. Safranski
Susanta K. Behura
Sexually Dimorphic Transcriptomic Changes of Developing Fetal Brain Reveal Signaling Pathways and Marker Genes of Brain Cells in Domestic Pigs
Cells
fetal sex
gene regulation
brain development
placenta
swine
author_facet Monica Strawn
Joao G. N. Moraes
Timothy J. Safranski
Susanta K. Behura
author_sort Monica Strawn
title Sexually Dimorphic Transcriptomic Changes of Developing Fetal Brain Reveal Signaling Pathways and Marker Genes of Brain Cells in Domestic Pigs
title_short Sexually Dimorphic Transcriptomic Changes of Developing Fetal Brain Reveal Signaling Pathways and Marker Genes of Brain Cells in Domestic Pigs
title_full Sexually Dimorphic Transcriptomic Changes of Developing Fetal Brain Reveal Signaling Pathways and Marker Genes of Brain Cells in Domestic Pigs
title_fullStr Sexually Dimorphic Transcriptomic Changes of Developing Fetal Brain Reveal Signaling Pathways and Marker Genes of Brain Cells in Domestic Pigs
title_full_unstemmed Sexually Dimorphic Transcriptomic Changes of Developing Fetal Brain Reveal Signaling Pathways and Marker Genes of Brain Cells in Domestic Pigs
title_sort sexually dimorphic transcriptomic changes of developing fetal brain reveal signaling pathways and marker genes of brain cells in domestic pigs
publisher MDPI AG
series Cells
issn 2073-4409
publishDate 2021-09-01
description In this study, transcriptomic changes of the developing brain of pig fetuses of both sexes were investigated on gestation days (GD) 45, 60 and 90. Pig fetal brain grows rapidly around GD60. Consequently, gene expression of the fetal brain was distinctly different on GD90 compared to that of GD45 and GD60. In addition, varying numbers of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in the male brain compared to the female brain during development. The sex of adjacent fetuses also influenced gene expression of the fetal brain. Extensive changes in gene expression at the exon-level were observed during brain development. Pathway enrichment analysis showed that the ionotropic glutamate receptor pathway and <i>p53</i> pathway were enriched in the female brain, whereas specific receptor-mediated signaling pathways were enriched in the male brain. Marker genes of neurons and astrocytes were significantly differentially expressed between male and female brains during development. Furthermore, comparative analysis of gene expression patterns between fetal brain and placenta suggested that genes related to ion transportation may play a key role in the regulation of the brain-placental axis in pig. Collectively, the study suggests potential application of pig models to better understand influence of fetal sex on brain development.
topic fetal sex
gene regulation
brain development
placenta
swine
url https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/10/9/2439
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