Identification and characterization of long non-coding RNAs in mammary gland tissues of Chinese Holstein cows

LncRNAs (Long non-coding RNA) is an RNA molecule with a length of more than 200 bp. LncRNAs can directly act on mRNA, thus affecting the expression of downstream target genes and proteins, and widely participate in many important physiological and pathological regulation processes of the body. In this study, RNA-Seq was performed to detect lncRNAs from mammary gland tissues of three Chinese Holstein cows, including three cows at 7 d before calving and the same three cows at 30 d postpartum (early lactation stage). A total of 1,905 novel lncRNAs were detected, 57.3% of the predicted lncRNAs are ≥ 500 bp and 612 lncRNAs are intronic lncRNAs. The exon number of lncRNAs ranged from 2 to 10. A total of 96 lncRNAs were significantly differentially expressed between two stages, of which 47 were upregulated and 49 were downregulated. Pathway analysis found that target genes were mainly concentrated on the ECM-receptor interaction, Jak-STAT signaling pathway, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, and TGF-beta signaling pathway. This study revealed the expression profile and characteristics of lncRNAs in the mammary gland tissues of Holstein cows at non-lactation and early lactation periods, and provided a basis for studying the functions of lncRNAs in Holstein cows during different lactation periods.