TY - JOUR T1 - Changes in Ovary Transcriptome and Alternative Splicing at Estrus from Xiang Pigs with Large and Small Litter Size JF - bioRxiv DO - 10.1101/547810 SP - 547810 AU - Fuping Zhang AU - Liangting Tang AU - Xueqin Ran AU - Ning Mao AU - Yiqi Ruan AU - Fanli Yi AU - Chang Liu AU - Xi Niu AU - Shihui Huang AU - Sheng Li AU - Jiafu Wang Y1 - 2019/01/01 UR - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/02/13/547810.abstract N2 - Background/Aims Litter size is one of the most important reproductive traits in pig breeding, which is affected by multiple genes and the environment. Ovaries are the most important reproductive organs and have a profound impact on the reproduction efficiency. Therefore, genetic differences in the ovaries may contribute to the observed differences in litter size. Although QTLs and candidate genes have been reported to affect the litter size in many pig breeds, however, the findings cannot elucidate the marked differences of the reproductive traits between breeds. The aim of present work is to elucidate the mechanisms of the differences for the reproductive traits and identify candidate genes associated with litter size in Xiang pig breed.Methods The changes in ovary transcriptome and alternative splicing were investigated at estrus between Xiang pigs with large and small litter size by RNA-seq technology. The RNA-seq results were confirmed by RT-qPCR method.Results We detected 16,219 - 16,285 expressed genes and 12 types of alternative splicing (AS) events in Xiang pig samples. A total of 762 differentially expressed genes were identified by XL (Xiang pig group with large litter size) vs XS (Xiang pig group with small litter size) sample comparisons. A total of 34 genes were upregulated and 728 genes were downregulated in XL ovary samples compared with the XS samples. Alternative splicing (AS) rates in XL samples were slightly lower than that observed in XS samples. Most of differentially expressed genes were differentially regulated on AS level. Eleven candidate genes were potentially identified to be related to Xiang pig fecundity and litter size, which may be closely related to the gonad development, oocyte maturation or embryo quality.Conclusion The significant changes in the expression of the protein-coding genes and the level of alternative splicing in estrus ovarian transcriptome between XL and XS groups probably are the molecular mechanisms of phenotypic variation in litter size. ER -