Analyses of histological and transcriptome differences in the skin of short-hair and long-hair rabbits

Hair fibre length is an important economic trait of rabbits in fur production. However, molecular mechanisms regulating rabbit hair growth have remained elusive.

Here we aimed to characterise the skin traits and gene expression profiles of short-hair and long-hair rabbits by histological and transcriptome analyses. Haematoxylin-eosin staining was performed to observe the histological structure of the skin of short-hair and long-hair rabbits. Compared to that in short-hair rabbits, a significantly longer anagen phase was observed in long-hair rabbits. In addition, by RNA sequencing, we identified 951 genes that were expressed at significantly different levels in the skin of short-hair and long-hair rabbits. Nine significantly differentially expressed genes were validated by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. A gene ontology analysis revealed that epidermis development, hair follicle development, and lipid metabolic process were significantly enriched. Further, we identified potential functional genes regulating follicle development, lipid metabolic, and apoptosis as well as important pathways including extracellular matrix-receptor interaction and basal cell carcinoma pathway.

The present study provides transcriptome evidence for the differences in hair growth between short-hair and long-hair rabbits and reveals that lipid metabolism and apoptosis might constitute major factors contributing to hair length.