RNA-Seq Analysis Reveals the Potential Molecular Mechanisms of Puerarin on Intramuscular Fat Deposition in Heat-Stressed Beef Cattle

Huan Chen; Tao Peng; Hanle Shang; Xianglong Shang; Xianghui Zhao; Mingren Qu; Xiaozhen Song

doi:10.3389/fnut.2022.817557

RNA-Seq Analysis Reveals the Potential Molecular Mechanisms of Puerarin on Intramuscular Fat Deposition in Heat-Stressed Beef Cattle

Front Nutr. 2022 Mar 21:9:817557. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.817557. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Huan Chen¹, Tao Peng¹, Hanle Shang¹, Xianglong Shang¹, Xianghui Zhao¹, Mingren Qu¹, Xiaozhen Song¹

Affiliation

¹ Jiangxi Province Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, Engineering Research Center of Feed Development, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, China.

Abstract

To investigate the effect of Puerarin on intramuscular fat deposition in heat-stressed beef cattle and its underlying mechanism. Thirty-two healthy Jinjiang bulls were randomly divided into four groups and dietary with 0 (Control), 200 (Pue200), 400 (Pue400), and 800 (Pue800) mg/kg Puerarin in the feed concentrate. The results showed that Puerarin treatment enhanced the concentration of crude fat, fatty acid (C14:1 and C17:1), and the activity of fatty acid synthase in Longissimus thoracis (LT), but decreased the levels of blood leptin (P < 0.05). High-throughput sequencing of mRNA technology (RNA-Seq) was used and the analysis showed that 492 genes were down-regulated and 341 genes were up-regulated in LT, and these genes were significantly enriched to the pathways related to lipid metabolism. These results indicated that dietary supplemental with Puerarin enhanced intramuscular fat deposition by regulating lipid metabolism of heat-stressed beef cattle.

Keywords: RNA-seq; beef cattle; heat stress; intramuscular fat deposition; lipid metabolism; puerarin.