The identification of molecular markers for fertility is critical for the sustainability of livestock production. We profiled small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs) in sperm from rams with high fertility (HF) and low fertility (LF) phenotypes to uncover their roles in ram sperm fertility. Rams were categorized into high-fertility (HF, n = 31; 94.5 ± 2.8%) and low-fertility (LF, n = 25; 83.1 ± 5.73%) phenotypes based on pregnancy rates (average 89.4 ± 7.2%). From these, sperm samples of HF (n = 4; pregnancy rate 99.2 ± 1.6%) and LF (n = 4; pregnancy rate 73.6 ± 4.4%) rams underwent sncRNA sequencing. Small RNA sequencing produced 14,962,876 reads in LF rams and 17,401,094 reads in HF rams, showing distinct sncRNA biotypes, including miRNAs, tRNAs, snoRNAs, snRNAs, and rRNAs. Among these, miRNAs comprised 7.12% of reads in LF rams and 3.78% in HF rams, while rRNAs and repeats formed significant proportions in both groups. A total of 1673 known and 627 novel miRNAs were identified, with 227 differentially expressed miRNAs between the HF and LF groups. We showed that key miRNAs, such as oar-miR-200b and oar-miR-370-3p, were upregulated in HF sperm, while downregulated miRNAs in LF, such as oar-miR-26b and oar-let-7d, were associated with impaired sperm function and DNA fragmentation. A functional enrichment analysis of miRNA target genes highlighted pathways related to ribonucleoprotein complex biogenesis, RNA processing, and gene expression regulation. These findings establish the critical role of sperm sncRNAs as regulators of fertility and potential biomarkers in breeding soundness tests for the precision farming of livestock for global food security.

Pancreatic cancer is known to have one of the highest mortality rates among other cancer. Monoterpenes are natural compounds obtained from essential oils of plants. Carvacrol is a monoterpene phenolic derived from essential oils of various aromatic plants.In this study, the effects of carvacrol on proliferation, apoptosis and metastasis of PANC-1 human pancreatic cancer cells were investigated. XTT assay was used to determine cell proliferation and viability. mRNA level expression levels of BAX, BCL2, CASP3, CASP7, CASP8, CASP9, CYCS, FADD, FAS and P53 were evaluated for determining the effect of carvacrol on apoptosis by qRT-PCR analysis. In addition, gene expressions of CDH1, CDH2, TIMP1, TIMP2, TIMP3, ZEB1 and ZEB2 were analyzed to evaluate its effect onmetastasis. Carvacrol inhibited the PANC-1 pancreatic cancer cell proliferation in dose and time dependent manner. Carvacrol treatment induced apoptosis by changing the expressions of genes important in apoptosis. Moreover, it suppressed the metastasis by effecting CDH1, CDH2, TIMP2, TIMP3 and ZEB2 expressions. In conclusion, carvacrol showed apoptotic and anti-metastatic effects in PANC-1 human pancreatic cancer cells. It is thereby concluded that carvacrol may have a therapeutic potential in pancreatic cancer.