2026/07/22 by Nooshin Ghahramani, J. Shodja, Seyed Abbas Rafat +4 · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Milk Quality and Mastitis in Dairy Cows #MicroRNA in disease regulation #Probiotics and Fermented Foods #Mastitis #Streptococcus uberis #Udder #microRNA #Dairy cattle #Gene #Context (archaeology) #KEGG
paper · doi:10.1071/an25109
openalex created_date 2026/07/22 · openalex publication_date 2026/07/22 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/23
Context Mastitis is a severe udder infection that significantly reduces both the quantity and quality of milk production, leading to substantial economic losses in the dairy industry. One of the primary bacterial pathogens implicated in mastitis disease is Streptococcus uberis. The susceptibility of dairy cattle to mastitis disease is a complex trait, which is influenced by various factors; the role of microRNAs (miRNAs) and their target genes in this disease has not been extensively investigated. Aims This study aimed to conduct a integrative analysis approach of miRNA datasets to discover significant miRNAs, their target genes, and the regulatory networks involved in S. uberis mastitis. Methods Differentially expressed miRNAs (DE-miRNAs) from three datasets (GSE59794, GSE41278, and GSE51858) were analyzed using DESeq2 to classify genes as either upregulated or downregulated. Afterwards, TargetScan was used to identify potential target genes associated with the significant miRNAs. The biological functions of these meta-miRNAs were further investigated through gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis and protein–protein interaction (PPI) network analysis. Key results In total, 13 DE-miRNAs were identified, including eight upregulated and five downregulated. Among these, three key meta-miRNAs, namely, bta-miR-98, bta-miR-138, and bta-miR-193a-3p, were found to be associated with immune regulation and udder cell differentiation during mastitis. Overall, 2061 target genes were recognized, with bta-miR-98 regulating 1121 genes, bta-miR-138 targeting 268 genes, and bta-miR-193a-3p controlling 672 genes. GO analysis showed 237 biological processes, 41 molecular functions, 54 cellular component activities, and nine KEGG pathways related to mastitis. In Cytoscape, 319, 113, and 124 target genes were imported for bta-miR-98, bta-miR-193a-3p, and bta-miR-138 respectively. Conclusions The findings indicated that miRNAs significantly contribute to the amplification of inflammatory responses by modulating metabolic pathways and interfering with essential biological processes in mastitis disease. Implications Our research can have significant implications for livestock and food production, particularly in terms of improving disease diagnosis and management, enhanced breeding strategies, reducing antibiotic use, improved milk quality and quantity, sustainability of dairy farming, and economic benefits.