Transcriptomics Reveals AgeRelated Changes in Yak Lungs

Yaks live in highland areas where ion transport is involved in regulating pulmonary vascular tone, affecting lung ventilation and blood flow rate, and contributing to the efficiency of oxygen delivery and thus better adaptation to the hypoxic environment. Ion transport plays a key role in maintaining intra- and extracellular ionic homeostasis and regulating cell membrane potential in organisms, which is essential for maintaining normal cellular function and tissue development. Although there have been studies on lung transcriptomics of yak and other bovine species to analyse the key genes and pathways in the adaptation of yak lungs to the high altitude environment, the regulatory mechanisms of ion transport-related factors on the growth and development of yak lungs are still unclear. In the present study, we used RNA-Seq technology to sequence the lungs of yaks from the newborn (1 day old), juvenile (1 year old) and adult (4 years old) groups, and screened the differentially expressed genes and analysed their functions to identify the genes related to ion transport, which will help us to understand the molecular mechanisms of yak adaptation to the high-altitude environment, and will provide useful references to the future research in the related fields.