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Animals
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Molecular Mechanisms Affecting Reproduction and Fertility in Cattle
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Molecular Mechanisms Affecting Reproduction and Fertility in Cattle

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Reproduction".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2022) | Viewed by 8455

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Zhangrui Cheng

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pathobiology and Population Sciences, The Royal Veterinary College, Hatfield, UK
Interests: reproduction; genomics; metabolism; immunology; bioinformatics; dairy; cattle
Dr. Chike Oguejiofor

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria
Interests: animal reproduction; reproductive immunology; genomics; dairy cattle

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Reproductive performance and fertility in dairy cows have declined over the past five decades. Female reproductive processes are complex, including luteolysis, follicular development, ovulation, fertilization, recognition and establishment of pregnancy, and parturition. Disruption in any of these processes will lead to poor reproductive performance and fertility. Many risk factors are involved, including genetics, physiology, nutrition, infections, and management. Selection for a higher milk yield increases metabolic load and leads to negative energy balance and decreased pregnancy rate. However, the explicit underlying molecular mechanisms remain elusive. The development of a wide variety of molecular and cell biology tools, such as gene and protein expression quantification, microarray, next-generation sequencing, proteomics, metabolomics, and the related bioinformatics tools, has enabled the investigation at pathway and global levels. This has also provided important insights improving our understanding of the underlying mechanisms of poor fertility and helping to combat this issue. 

In this Special Issue we encourage the submission of original articles and reviews on the following topics (not an exhaustive list):

  • Effects and molecular mechanisms of postpartum negative energy balance on reproduction and fertility.
  • Identification and validation of novel biomarkers for the prediction and improvement of reproductive performance.
  • Functional genomics studies (transcriptomic, proteomic, epigenetic, etc.) investigating the underlying mechanisms involved in poor reproductive performance and fertility.
  • Studies on the effects of nutrition, infections, and management on the whole animal and critical tissues, organs, and cells at various critical stages of the reproductive processes in cows which shed light onto the molecular mechanisms of poor reproduction and fertility.
  • The relationships between reproductive tract flora disorders and reproductive performance.
  • Genetic variations (structural variants, CNVs, and SNPs) which affect the outcome of reproductive performance and diseases.

Dr. Zhangrui Cheng
Dr. Chike Oguejiofor
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • cows
  • molecular mechanisms
  • genetics
  • reproductive performance
  • fertility
  • genomics

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 1690 KiB  
Article
Machine Learning-Based Co-Expression Network Analysis Unravels Potential Fertility-Related Genes in Beef Cows
by Wellison J. S. Diniz, Priyanka Banerjee, Soren P. Rodning and Paul W. Dyce
Animals 2022, 12(19), 2715; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12192715 - 09 Oct 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1728
Abstract
Reproductive failure is still a challenge for beef producers and a significant cause of economic loss. The increased availability of transcriptomic data has shed light on the mechanisms modulating pregnancy success. Furthermore, new analytical tools, such as machine learning (ML), provide opportunities for [...] Read more.
Reproductive failure is still a challenge for beef producers and a significant cause of economic loss. The increased availability of transcriptomic data has shed light on the mechanisms modulating pregnancy success. Furthermore, new analytical tools, such as machine learning (ML), provide opportunities for data mining and uncovering new biological events that explain or predict reproductive outcomes. Herein, we identified potential biomarkers underlying pregnancy status and fertility-related networks by integrating gene expression profiles through ML and gene network modeling. We used public transcriptomic data from uterine luminal epithelial cells of cows retrospectively classified as pregnant (P, n = 25) and non-pregnant (NP, n = 18). First, we used a feature selection function from BioDiscML and identified SERPINE3, PDCD1, FNDC1, MRTFA, ARHGEF7, MEF2B, NAA16, ENSBTAG00000019474, and ENSBTAG00000054585 as candidate biomarker predictors of pregnancy status. Then, based on co-expression networks, we identified seven genes significantly rewired (gaining or losing connections) between the P and NP networks. These biomarkers were co-expressed with genes critical for uterine receptivity, including endometrial tissue remodeling, focal adhesion, and embryo development. We provided insights into the regulatory networks of fertility-related processes and demonstrated the potential of combining different analytical tools to prioritize candidate genes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Mechanisms Affecting Reproduction and Fertility in Cattle)
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16 pages, 1957 KiB  
Article
In Vitro Effects of Short-Term and Long-Term Heat Exposures on the Immune Response and Prostaglandin Biosynthesis in Bovine Endometrial Cells
by Sroisuda Chotimanukul, Junpen Suwimonteerabutr, Mongkol Techakumphu and Theerawat Swangchan-Uthai
Animals 2022, 12(18), 2359; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12182359 - 09 Sep 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1545
Abstract
Worldwide heat stress (HS) conditions have a negative impact on dairy cow fertility. However, understanding of the effect of heat stress on endometrial functions is still unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of differential heat exposure conditions on the immune [...] Read more.
Worldwide heat stress (HS) conditions have a negative impact on dairy cow fertility. However, understanding of the effect of heat stress on endometrial functions is still unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of differential heat exposure conditions on the immune response and prostaglandin biosynthesis of bovine endometrium challenged with bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Cultures of endometrial cells were grown to confluence at 37 °C (control) and 40.4 °C for 24 h after confluence (short-term heat exposure) and 40.4 °C for 8 days from the beginning of the culture (long-term heat exposure), prior to a challenge by 100 ng/mL LPS for 12 h. LPS altered ALOX12, IL8, IL1B, S100A8, PTGES and AKR1B1 expressions, as well as secretory IL8 and PGF2α. Short-term heat exposure decreased S100A8, IL8 and PGF2α compared with the control temperature, while long-term heat exposure decreased S100A8 and PGF2α. In contrast, HSPA5 expression was not altered by heat exposure or LPS. Indeed, the short-term heat treatment was insufficient for accomplishing the responses of the endometrium to LPS treatment for IL8, S100A8 and PTGES expressions when compared with other temperature conditions. Our findings showed that heat exposure could compromise endometrium immune response and prostaglandin biosynthesis in different ways based on elevated temperature duration, which could reduce subsequent fertility. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Mechanisms Affecting Reproduction and Fertility in Cattle)
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7 pages, 581 KiB  
Communication
Frequency of an X-Linked Maternal Variant of the Bovine FOXP3 Gene Associated with Infertility in Different Cattle Breeds: A Pilot Study
by Md Shafiqul Islam, Mitsuhiro Takagi, Keun-Woo Lee, Hye-Sook Chang, Hiroaki Okawa, Muchammad Yunus, Tita Damayanti Lestari, Martia Rani Tacharina, Shahnaj Pervin, Tofazzal Md Rakib, Akira Yabuki and Osamu Yamato
Animals 2022, 12(8), 1044; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12081044 - 17 Apr 2022
Viewed by 2145
Abstract
Immune adaptation plays an essential role in determining pregnancy, which has been shown to be dependent on sufficient immunological tolerance mediated by FOXP3+ regulatory T cells. Recently, an X-linked maternal single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), located 2175 base pairs upstream of the start codon [...] Read more.
Immune adaptation plays an essential role in determining pregnancy, which has been shown to be dependent on sufficient immunological tolerance mediated by FOXP3+ regulatory T cells. Recently, an X-linked maternal single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), located 2175 base pairs upstream of the start codon in the bovine FOXP3 gene (NC_037357.1: g.87298881A>G, rs135720414), was identified in Japanese Black (JB: Bos taurus) cows in association with recurrent infertility. However, with the exception of JB cows, the frequency of this SNP has yet to be studied in other cow populations. In this study, we thus aimed to evaluate the frequency of this SNP in different cow breeds. Between 2018 and 2021, a total of 809 DNA samples were obtained from 581 JB, 73 Holstein Friesian (HF: B. taurus), 125 Korean Hanwoo (KH: B. taurus coreanae), and 30 Indonesian Madura (IM: a crossbreed between B. indicus and B. javanicus) cows, which were genotyped using a TaqMan probe-based real-time polymerase chain reaction assay designed in this study. The frequency of the G allele was found to be relatively high in local IM (0.700), moderate in dairy HF (0.466), and low in beef JB (0.250) and KH (0.112) cows, with differences in the frequencies between each group being shown to be statistically significant (p < 0.005) using Fisher’s exact test. The results obtained in this study indicate that the G allele frequencies of the identified the SNP differ markedly in different breeds of taurine and indicine cattle. Given these findings, it would thus be important to evaluate the relationships between high frequencies of the G allele and infertility in different breeds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Mechanisms Affecting Reproduction and Fertility in Cattle)
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15 pages, 4991 KiB  
Article
The Distribution, Expression Patterns and Functional Analysis of NR1D1 and NR4A2 in the Reproductive Axis Tissues of the Male Tianzhu White Yak
by Lijun Dai, Quanwei Zhang, Jun Shi, Xu Bai, Xiaoxiao An, Bohao Zhang, Yong Zhang and Xingxu Zhao
Animals 2021, 11(11), 3117; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11113117 - 31 Oct 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1979
Abstract
Nuclear hormone receptors NR1D1 and NR4A2 play important roles in the synthesis and metabolism of hormones that are thought to be strictly regulated by the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonad axis (HPG) tissues via gene expression. However, in the yak, the function and regulatory mechanisms of NR1D1 [...] Read more.
Nuclear hormone receptors NR1D1 and NR4A2 play important roles in the synthesis and metabolism of hormones that are thought to be strictly regulated by the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonad axis (HPG) tissues via gene expression. However, in the yak, the function and regulatory mechanisms of NR1D1 and NR4A2 are not clearly understood. The current study is aimed to investigate the expression patterns, distribution and functions of these two receptors in HPG tissues in male Tianzhu white yaks. Immunohistochemical staining showed NR1D1 and NR4A2 proteins were present in all yak HPG tissues with differential expression patterns and degrees of staining, particularly in Leydig cells that were strongly positive in accordance with the immunofluorescence results. qRT-PCR and Western blot results suggested that the highest expression levels of NR1D1 and NR4A2 mRNA were present in the hypothalamus, while the expression levels of NR1D1 and NR4A2 proteins were higher in the testis and epididymis than in the hypothalamus or pituitary gland. In addition, expression levels of NR1D1 and NR4A2 mRNA and protein in testicular tissues differed by age. Expression levels were significantly higher at 6 years of age. Gene ontology (GO) and pathway analysis enrichment revealed that NR1D1 may directly regulate the synthesis and metabolism of steroid hormones via interaction with different targets, while NR4A2 may indirectly regulate the synthesis and metabolism of steroid hormones. These results showed that NR1D1 and NR4A2, as important mediators, are involved in the regulation of male yak reproduction, and especially of steroid hormones and androgen metabolism. These results will be helpful for the further understanding of the regulatory mechanisms of NR1D1 and NR4A2 in yak reproduction. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Mechanisms Affecting Reproduction and Fertility in Cattle)
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