Identification of gene expression changes in rabbit uterus during embryo implantation

Embryo implantation in the rabbit is unique in that a typical fusion type of implantation is employed, in which trophoblast cells adhere and fuse to the apical surface of uterine epithelial cells. In the present study, we analyzed global gene expression changes in the rabbit uterus during embryo implantation by using RNA-seq. We identified a total of 536 differentially expressed genes (fold change >2 and adjusted p-value <0.01), of which 266 genes were down-regulated and 270 genes were up-regulated at the implantation site compared to the inter-implantation site. Functional clustering revealed that cell adhesion is among top ranked enriched terms from both gene ontology and pathway analysis, highlighting the importance of cell adhesion during embryo implantation in rabbits. Through gene network analysis, we prioritized 9 genes using the hub gene method. Our study provides a valuable resource for in-depth understanding of the mechanism underlying embryo implantation in rabbits.