Transcriptome Analysis Revealed Potential Mechanisms of Resistance to Trichomoniasis gallinae Infection in Pigeon (Columba livia)

Jingwei Yuan; Aixin Ni; Yunlei Li; Shixiong Bian; Yunjie Liu; Panlin Wang; Lei Shi; Adamu Mani Isa; Pingzhuang Ge; Yanyan Sun; Hui Ma; Jilan Chen

doi:10.3389/fvets.2021.672270

Transcriptome Analysis Revealed Potential Mechanisms of Resistance to Trichomoniasis gallinae Infection in Pigeon (Columba livia)

Front Vet Sci. 2021 Sep 14:8:672270. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2021.672270. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Jingwei Yuan¹, Aixin Ni¹, Yunlei Li¹, Shixiong Bian¹, Yunjie Liu¹, Panlin Wang¹, Lei Shi¹, Adamu Mani Isa^{1

2}, Pingzhuang Ge¹, Yanyan Sun¹, Hui Ma¹, Jilan Chen¹

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Animal Science, China Academy of Agricultural Science, Beijing, China.
² Department of Animal Science, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Nigeria.

Abstract

Trichomoniasis gallinae (T. gallinae) is one of the most pathogenic parasites in pigeon, particularly in squabs. Oral cavity is the main site for the host-parasite interaction. Herein, we used RNA-sequencing technology to characterize lncRNA and mRNA profiles and compared transcriptomic dynamics of squabs, including four susceptible birds (S) from infected group, four tolerant birds (T) without parasites after T. gallinae infection, and three birds from uninfected group (N), to understand molecular mechanisms underlying host resistance to this parasite. We identified 29,809 putative lncRNAs and characterized their genomic features subsequently. Differentially expressed (DE) genes, DE-lncRNAs and cis/trans target genes of DE-lncRNAs were further compared among the three groups. The KEGG analysis indicated that specific intergroup DEGs were involved in carbon metabolism (S vs. T), metabolic pathways (N vs. T) and focal adhesion pathway (N vs. S), respectively. Whereas, the cis/trans genes of DE-lncRNAs were enriched in cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, toll-like receptor signaling pathway, p53 signaling pathway and insulin signaling pathway, which play crucial roles in immune system of the host animal. This suggests T. gallinae invasion in pigeon mouth may modulate lncRNAs expression and their target genes. Moreover, co-expression analysis identified crucial lncRNA-mRNA interaction networks. Several DE-lncRNAs including MSTRG.82272.3, MSTRG.114849.42, MSTRG.39405.36, MSTRG.3338.5, and MSTRG.105872.2 targeted methylation and immune-related genes, such as JCHAIN, IL18BP, ANGPT1, TMRT10C, SAMD9L, and SOCS3. This implied that DE-lncRNAs exert critical influence on T. gallinae infections. The quantitative exploration of host transcriptome changes induced by T. gallinae infection broaden both transcriptomic and epigenetic insights into T. gallinae resistance and its pathological mechanism.

Keywords: Trichomoniasis gallinae resistance; differential expression analysis; long non-coding RNA; mRNA; pigeon.