Multi-tissue gene expression profiling of cows with a genetic predisposition for low and high milk urea levels

Figures & data

Table 1. Enrichment analysis based on genes differentially expressed in the mammary gland between cows with high and low breeding values for milk urea.

Database	Term name	Adjusted p value	Genes
GO:BP	cellular amino acid metabolic process	0.0004	ASNS, DBT, DHFR, EPRS1, ETFA, GARS1, IARS1, MARS1, NARS1, PSAT1, TARS1
GO:BP	tRNA aminoacylation for protein translation	0.0007	EPRS1, GARS1, IARS1, MARS1, NARS1, TARS1
GO:BP	tRNA aminoacylation	0.0011	EPRS1, GARS1, IARS1, MARS1, NARS1, TARS1
GO:BP	amino acid activation	0.0012	EPRS1, GARS1, IARS1, MARS1, NARS1, TARS1
KEGG	ECM-receptor interaction	0.0000	CD36, COL4A2, COL6A3, HSPG2, ITGA5, ITGB4, LAMB2, THBS4, VWF
KEGG	focal adhesion	0.0006	COL4A2, COL6A3, ITGA5, ITGB4, LAMB2, PDGFRB, PIP5K1B, THBS4, TLN1, VEGFA, VWF
KEGG	aminoacyl-tRNA biosynthesis	0.0006	EPRS1, GARS1, IARS1, MARS1, NARS1, TARS1
KEGG	cholesterol metabolism	0.0143	CD36, LRP1, PLTP, SCARB1, TSPO

Figure 1. Expression profiling and enrichment analysis of key molecular features in liver, kidney and mammary gland discriminating HMUg and LMUg cows. The tissue-specific expression of the selected genes and the hierarchical clustering of the samples are illustrated in a heatmap (A). The color key represents the Z-score indicating the level of gene expression. The circos plot (B) indicates the key genes in each tissue (yellow: mammary gland, brown: liver and grey: kidney), their correlations greater than 0.7 (inner circle) and the predominant expression of genes in HMUg and LMUg group (outer circle). The enrichment plot (C) shows the significantly enriched GO terms (GO:BP) and pathways (IPA and KEGG) based on the 147 genes.

Figure 2. Genes related to amino acid transport and the TCA cycle and their differential expression in the mammary gland, liver and kidney between cows with high and low breeding values for MU. The colors reflect the fold change in expression levels between HMUg and LMUg cows. Asterisks indicate the significance of the results (p value < 0.05). White fields are indicating the absence of expression in the corresponding context.

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author [KW] upon reasonable request.