Cystic Echinococcosis(CE), caused by infection with the larval stage of the cestode Echinococcus granulosus (E. granulosus), is a chronic parasitic zoonosis, with highly susceptible infection in sheep. However, the comprehensive molecular mechanisms that underlie the process of E. granulosus infection in the early stage remain largely unknown. The objective of this present study was to gain a cluster of genes expression profiles in the intestine tissue of sheep infected with CE. Nine healthy sheep were divided into infection group and healthy controls, with six infected perorally 5000 E. granulosus eggs suspended in 1000μl physiological saline and three controls perorally injected 1000μl physiological saline. All animals were sacrificed at 4 hours post-infection, respectively. The intestine tissue was removed and the RNA was extracted. In the infection group, the biology replicates were designed to make sure the accuracy of the data. The ovine microarrays were used to analyze changes of gene expression in the intestine tissue between CE infected sheep and healthy controls. Real-time PCR was used to assess reliability of the microarray data. By biology repeats, a total of 195 differentially expressed genes were identified between infected group and controls at 4 hours post-infection, with 105 genes related to immune responses, while 90 genes associated with functions including energy metabolism, fat soluble transport, etc. Among the 105 immunity genes, 72 genes showed up-regulated expression levels while 33 showed down-regulation levels. Function analysis showed that most of up-regulated genes were related to innate immune responses, such as mast cell, NK cell, cytokines, chemokines and complement. In addition, Real-time PCR analysis of a random selection of nine genes confirmed the reliability of the microarray data. To our knowledge, this is the first report describing gene expression profiles in the intestine tissue of CE infection sheep. These results suggested that the innate immune system was activated to elicit immediate defense in the intestine tissue where E. granulosus invaded in at 4 hour-post infection. Furthermore, future interest will also focus on unraveling similar events, especially for the function of adaptive immunity, but at late stage infection.

Cystic Echinococcosis (CE), caused by infection with the Echinococcus granulosus (E. granulosus), represents considerable health problems in both humans and livestock. Nevertheless, the genetic program that regulates the host response to E. granulosus infection is largely unknown. Previously, using microarray analysis, we found that the innate immunity played a vital role in the E. granulosus defense of the intestine tissue where E. granulosus first invaded. Subsequently, we turned our attention to investigating the molecular immune mechanism in its organ target, the liver, which is where the E. granulosus metacestodes are established and live for very long periods. In this work, the microarray-based methodology was used to study gene expression profiles in the liver of sheep infected with E. granulosus at 8 weeks post infection, corresponding to the early cystic established phase. A total of 6 female-1-year-old healthy Kazakh sheep were used for the experiments. Three Kazakh sheep were orally infected with E. granulosus eggs, and the others remained untreated and served as controls. Sheep were humanely euthanized and necropsized at 8 weeks post-infection (the early stage of cyst established). The microarray was used to detect differential hepatic gene expression between CE infection sheep and healthy controls at this time point. Real-time PCR was used to validate the microarray data. We found that E. granulosus infection induces 153 differentially expressed genes in the livers of infected sheep compared with healthy controls. Among them, 87 genes were up-regulated, and 66 genes were notably down-regulated. Functional analysis showed that these genes were associated with three major functional categories: (a) metabolism, (b) the immune system and (c) signaling and transport. Deeper analysis indicated that complement together with other genes associated with metabolism, played important roles in the defense of E. granulosus infection. The present study identified genes profiling in the liver tissue of E. granulosus infection in sheep. The expression pattern obtained here could be helpful for understanding the molecular immunity mechanisms of host responses to E. granulosus infection. However, it is necessary to carry out further studies to evalute the role of these genes.

Introduction: To improve meat yield and nutritional quality of Tibetan sheep of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Australian White and Small-tailed Han rams were introduced to crossbred with Tibetan sheep (Oura-type, O) ewes which possessed genetic homogeneity. The aim of this study was to compare growth conformation, meat quality, and further identified related candidate genes between Tibetan sheep and their three-way crossbreds (25% Australian White × 25% Small-tailed Han × 50% Oura-type Tibetan, AHO).Methods: Fifteen 5.5-month-old male lambs (8 O and 7 AHO crossbred) were raised for 5.5 months. We compared body conformation, carcass traits, meat quality (pH, color, cooking loss), nutrient composition (amino acids, fatty acids, ribonucleotides) in longissimus thoracis et lumborum (LTL) muscle, and analyzed differentially expressed genes through transcriptomics.Results: Our findings indicated that 5.5-month-old AHO lambs exhibited significantly superior body conformation and carcass traits (p < 0.05), including live weight, cannon circumference, carcass weight, and loin eye area. Their LTL muscle contained higher levels of PUFA, n-6 PUFA, and a greater PUFA/SFA ratio along with the content of glutamic acid and methionine (p < 0.05), and an increased trend for inosine monophosphate (p = 0.072) in the AHO lambs than O groups. Transcriptomic analysis identified candidate genes including CSRP3, ANKRD1, IFRD1, PPARGC1A, and AMPD3, which are differentially expressed and associated with muscle development and meat flavor.Conclusion: The study revealed that AHO lambs demonstrated better growth and meat quality, with identified candidate genes for these traits. These findings provide practical strategies for enhancing Tibetan lamb meat quality through crossbreeding optimization in high-altitude regions.