Table2_Transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses of the ovaries of Taihe black-bone silky fowls at the peak egg-laying and nesting period.XLS

The poor reproductive performance of most local Chinese chickens limits the economic benefits and output of related enterprises. As an excellent local breed in China, Taihe black-bone silky fowl is in urgent need of our development and utilization. In this study, we performed transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses of the ovaries of Taihe black-bone silky fowls at the peak egg-laying period (PP) and nesting period (NP) to reveal the molecular mechanisms affecting reproductive performance. In the transcriptome, we identified five key differentially expressed genes (DEGs) that may affect the reproductive performance of Taihe black-bone silky fowl: BCHE, CCL5, SMOC1, CYTL1, and SCIN, as well as three important pathways: the extracellular region, Neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction and Cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction. In the metabolome, we predicted three important ovarian significantly differential metabolites (SDMs): LPC 20:4, Bisphenol A, and Cortisol. By integration analysis of transcriptome and metabolome, we identified three important metabolite-gene pairs: “LPC 20:4-BCHE”, “Bisphenol A-SMOC1”, and “Cortisol- SCIN”. In summary, this study contributes to a deeper understanding of the regulatory mechanism of egg production in Taihe black-bone silky fowl and provides a scientific basis for improving the reproductive performance of Chinese local chickens.

我国多数地方土鸡的繁殖性能欠佳，制约了相关养殖企业的经济效益与产能。泰和乌骨鸡（Taihe black-bone silky fowl）作为我国优秀地方品种，亟待开发与利用。本研究针对处于产蛋高峰期（Peak Egg-laying Period, PP）与就巢期（Nesting Period, NP）的泰和乌骨鸡卵巢开展转录组学与代谢组学分析，以揭示影响其繁殖性能的分子机制。转录组分析共筛选出5个可能影响泰和乌骨鸡繁殖性能的关键差异表达基因（Differentially Expressed Genes, DEGs）：BCHE、CCL5、SMOC1、CYTL1及SCIN，同时确定3条重要调控条目：细胞外区域、神经活性配体-受体相互作用以及细胞因子-细胞因子受体相互作用。代谢组分析则预测得到3种关键卵巢显著差异代谢物（Significantly Differential Metabolites, SDMs）：LPC 20:4、双酚A（Bisphenol A）及皮质醇（Cortisol）。通过转录组与代谢组整合分析，本研究鉴定出3组关键代谢物-基因关联对："LPC 20:4-BCHE"、"双酚A-SMOC1"以及"皮质醇-SCIN"。综上，本研究有助于深入解析泰和乌骨鸡的产蛋调控机制，为提升我国地方土鸡的繁殖性能提供了科学依据。