Omics & gene networks

Competing RNA endogenous network shows potential miRNA-lncRNA pairs regulating inflammation during mastitis and a major role for bta-miR-15a

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Abstract

Bovine subclinical mastitis (SCM) is an inflammatory condition of the mammary gland often caused by bacteria and other pathogens including Staphylococcus aureus [S. aureus]. SCM leads to reduced milk production and quality, with significant economic losses to the dairy industry. Several microRNAs (miRNAs) have been implicated in the regulation of the inflammatory response to bovine SCM, yet their specific roles and mechanisms of action remain unclear. This study investigated the roles of miRNAs and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in bovine SCM caused by S. aureus. RNA was isolated from milk somatic cells from cows naturally infected with S. aureus (n=11) and healthy (n=5) cows, and used for RNA (RNA-Seq) and small RNA (small RNA-Seq) sequencing and bioinformatics processing using the nfcore RNA-Seq and nfcore smRNA-Seq pipelines, respectively. A total of 200 miRNAs including bta-miR-200b, bta-miR-15a, bta-miR-223, bta-miR-141, bta-miR-30a-5p etc. and 990 lncRNAs including LOC101907152, LOC107132431, LOC112444920, LOC104974269, LOC101905365 etc. were found as differentially expressed in S. aureus-positive cows. Target gene prediction and pathway analyses revealed bta-miR-15a as a potential inflammatory response regulator. FGFR1 and CDC25B, identified as target genes of bta-miR-15a, were among the genes overrepresented in immune-related KEGG pathways, including the MAPK signaling pathway. Competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network analysis revealed cooperative interactions between several miRNAs-lncRNA pairs (e.g. bta-miR-15a-LOC100335751, bta-miR-151-3p-LOC101902531, bta-miR-141-LOC107132275, bta-miR-142-3P-LOC107132456, etc.) potentially involved in the regulation of inflammation. Functional validation of the roles of bta-miR-15a following lipoteichoic acid (LTA) treatment of MAC-T cells as inflammatory stimulus resulted in the increased expression of IL-6 and TNF-α and downregulated expression of two of its target genes, FGFR1 and CDC25B. In conclusion, the DE miRNAs and lncRNAs and in particular, bta-miR-15a may play regulatory roles in SCM and bta-miR-15a could be explored as a biomarker target for the development of strategies for the management of bovine SCM.

Keywords: 2026

How to Cite:

Genier, S., Ibeagha-Awemu, E., Omonijo, F. & Zhao, X., (2026) “Competing RNA endogenous network shows potential miRNA-lncRNA pairs regulating inflammation during mastitis and a major role for bta-miR-15a”, World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production Digital Archive 2026(1): 2287269. doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/wcgalp.24251

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