Transcriptomic analysis of MA-10 Leydig cells treated with gigantol

Gigantol is a bibenzyl compound isolated from several types of orchids of the genus Dendrobium. This compound has various biological activities, including antioxidant activity. However, its capacity to regulate gene expression in testicular Leydig cells has never been evaluated. We investigated the effect of gigantol on MA-10 Leydig cells' gene expression using an RNA-Seq approach. Cells were treated with gigantol 10uM for 4h, followed by total RNA extractions. Libraries were prepared using the NEBNext Stranded mRNA kit for cDNA synthesis and polyA enrichment. Transcriptome sequencing was performed on an Illumina HiSeq 4000 in paired reads layout with approximately 35.5 million reads per sample and 100 bp of sequencing length. Libraries and next generation sequencing were completed by the McGill Uni-versity and Genome Quebec Innovation Centre (Montreal, QC, CAN). According to transcriptomic analysis, all genes coding for cholesterol biosynthesis-related enzymes are increased in response to gigantol treatment with 10 uM for 4h. Thus, our findings indicate that gigantol improves cholesterol and steroid biosynthesis within testicular Leydig cells and may delay the onset of male hypogonadism.