Transcriptomic data of the large Diqing Tibetan pig in fat deposition

The contents of subcutaneous, intramuscular, and intermuscular fat directly affect pork quality. The large Diqing Tibetan pig (TP) is a unique plateau pig breed in China. However, the mechanism of transcriptional regulation of fat deposition in this pig is unclear. We aimed to identify the important genes involved in fat deposition in TPs. We obtained transcriptomic data from backfat (BF) tissues of TP and Duroc pigs (DP) via RNA-seq analyses. Comparative analyses of TP and DP yielded 1,452 differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Functional annotation of these DEGs revealed enrichment in metabolic processes, insulin signaling pathways, fatty acid synthesis, lipid metabolism, pyruvate metabolism, carboxylic acid metabolic processes, and other related pathways. Eleven genes (SCD, LPIN1, PECR, FMO3, THRSP, SNCG, GM2A, HK1, ADIPOQ, PLAAT, and NUPR1) were identified as key candidate regulators that might be crucial in the fat deposition traits of TPs. This study provides reference data for analyses of the genetic regulation mechanism of fat deposition and improved meat quality of TPs using molecular marker-assisted selection.