Dynamic Landscape of Alternative Splicing During Early Embryogenesis of the Rhesus Monkey

Area of Science:

• Developmental Biology
• Genomics
• Bioinformatics

Background:

• Rhesus macaques are close human relatives, making their early development a valuable model for human embryogenesis.
• Understanding alternative splicing (AS) in early development is crucial for insights into human developmental diseases.
• Systematic studies on AS in early rhesus macaque embryogenesis are limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To comprehensively analyze alternative splicing (AS) dynamics during early rhesus macaque embryogenesis.
• To identify key splicing factors (SFs) regulating AS during early development.
• To refine the repertoire of zygotic genome activation (ZGA) genes in rhesus macaques.

Main Methods:

• Bioinformatic analysis of RNA-seq data from early rhesus macaque embryos.
• Characterization of AS landscape and differential AS events (DASEs).
• Weighted gene co-expression network analysis to identify SFs and their regulatory roles.

Main Results:

• Identification of novel ZGA genes, enhancing the rhesus macaque ZGA gene repertoire.
• Characterization of dynamic and stage-specific AS, with increased events from 8-cell to morula stages.
• Identification of 35 key SFs and potential regulatory links between SFs (TRA2B, IGF2BP1, HNRNPAB, MATR3) and DASEs during ZGA.

Conclusions:

• This study provides the first systematic analysis of AS dynamics and regulation in early rhesus macaque embryogenesis.
• AS plays a critical role in early embryonic development.
• Findings offer a valuable reference for understanding AS in early human embryos and related diseases.