Identification and analysis of key circRNAs in the mouse embryonic ovary provides insight into primordial follicle development

Xiangyan Wang; Yan Zhang; Jianjie Yu; Yabo Ma; Yaxiu Xu; Jiaqi Shi; Zhipeng Qi; Xinfeng Liu

doi:10.1186/s12864-024-10058-y

Identification and analysis of key circRNAs in the mouse embryonic ovary provides insight into primordial follicle development

BMC Genomics. 2024 Feb 3;25(1):139. doi: 10.1186/s12864-024-10058-y.

Authors

Xiangyan Wang^#^{1

2}, Yan Zhang^#^{1

2}, Jianjie Yu^{1

2}, Yabo Ma^{1

2}, Yaxiu Xu^{1

2}, Jiaqi Shi^{1

2}, Zhipeng Qi^{1

2}, Xinfeng Liu^{3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Conservation and Utilization of Special Biological Resources in the Western, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, 750021, China.
² School of Life Sciences, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, 750021, China.
³ Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Conservation and Utilization of Special Biological Resources in the Western, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, 750021, China. liu2019074@nxu.edu.cn.
⁴ School of Life Sciences, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, 750021, China. liu2019074@nxu.edu.cn.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Background: CircRNAs are a class of noncoding RNAs with tissue- and development-specific expression characteristics. In many mammals, primordial follicle development begins in the embryonic stage. However, the study of circRNAs in primordial follicle development in mice has not been reported.

Results: In this study, ovaries were collected from mouse foetuses at 15.5 days post coitus (dpc) and 17.5 dpc, which are two key stages of primordial follicle development. A total of 4785 circRNAs were obtained by using RNA-seq. Of these, 83 differentially expressed circRNAs were identified. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses showed that these differential circRNAs were mainly involved in the regulation of reproductive development. Through qRT-PCR, back-splice sequence detection and enzyme digestion protection experiments, we found that circ-009346, circ-014674, circ-017054 and circ-008296 were indeed circular. Furthermore, circ-009346, circ-014674 and circ-017054 were identified as three key circRNAs by analysing their expression in the ovaries of mice at different developmental stages. The circRNA-miRNA-mRNA interaction network was constructed and validated for target miRNA and mRNA using qRT-PCR. The interacting genes circ-009346, circ-014674, and circ-017054 were subjected to KEGG enrichment analysis. We found that circ-014674 may participate in the assembly and reserve of primordial follicles through oestrogen and the Janus kinase (JAK) signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) signalling pathway (JAK-SATA). Circ-009346 and circ-017054 may have similar functions and are involved in the activation and growth of primordial follicles through the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) signalling pathways.

Conclusions: Based on our findings, three circRNAs associated with primordial follicle development were identified, and their potential mechanisms of regulating primordial follicle development were revealed. These findings will help us better understand the molecular mechanism of circRNAs in primordial follicles and provide important references and targets for the development of primordial follicles.

Keywords: Mice; Ovary; Primordial follicle; RNA-seq; circRNA.

MeSH terms

Animals
Female
Mammals / genetics
Mice
MicroRNAs* / genetics
Ovary / metabolism
Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases
RNA, Circular* / genetics
RNA, Circular* / metabolism
RNA, Messenger

Substances

RNA, Circular
Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases
MicroRNAs
RNA, Messenger