CircDCAF6 Modulates Proliferation and Apoptosis in Bovine Myoblasts Through the miR-181d/CCNB1 Axis

This study investigates circDCAF6 in Qinchuan cattle muscle development. Firstly, circDCAF6 was screened and identified, and it was found that this circular RNA was highly expressed in muscle tissue and more stable than linear RNA. By designing interference RNA and overexpression recombinant vectors based on circDCAF6, functional studies have shown that circDCAF6 can significantly promote the proliferation of myoblasts and inhibit their apoptosis process. Through targeted regulation analysis, we found that circDCAF6 can interact with miR-181d and regulate the expression of downstream target gene CCNB1 through miR-181d, thereby affecting the proliferation and apoptosis of myoblasts. In addition, interference experiments have shown that inhibiting CCNB1 can significantly reduce the proportion of cells in the S phase of the cell cycle and increase the proportion of early apoptotic cells. This effect can be partially rescued by co-transfection with circDCAF6. In summary, this study suggests that circDCAF6 plays a critical role in the proliferation and apoptosis of Qinchuan cattle myoblasts by targeting miR-181d to regulate the expression of CCNB1. These findings provide a new perspective for a deeper understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying muscle development and may offer new molecular targets for genetic improvement in beef cattle.