Effect of Macleaya cordata extract on the growth performance and growth-related expression gene pathways in rats was investigated by liver transcriptome technology

Macleaya cordata is a perennial upright herb belonging to the family Papaveraceae that represents a natural and low-residue product that has good effects in the prevention and treatment of livestock and poultry diseases and improves production performance; moreover, drug resistance to Macleaya cordata is difficult to establish. However, the specific mechanism of action is not clear. Therefore, this study was performed to clarify the molecular mechanism through transcriptome technology. Thirty-six specific pathogen free (SPF) male Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were divided into 3 groups of 12 rats each: high and low dose groups of 0.5 mg/10 g bw.d and 0.05 mg/10 g bw.d, respectively, and a blank group administered normal saline. Three livers from each group were collected for transcriptome sequencing, and Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) annotation, and pathway enrichment analyses of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were performed. Transcriptome sequencing results revealed 104 upregulated and 354 downregulated genes in the high-dose group and 116 upregulated and 46 downregulated genes in the low-dose group compared with the blank group. The GO analysis showed that the DEGs were mainly associated with ATP metabolism, molecular transmembrane transport, protein decomposition and regulation, and nitrogen metabolism. The KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that the DEGs were mainly involved in cell proliferation and differentiation, amino acid metabolism, lipid transport, purine metabolism, and gluconeogenesis. Eight differentially expressed genes (RAD15D, BMP7, NFATC4, HDC, RPS6, RPS25, MRP133, and COX6C) verified by qRT-PCR were consistent with the trend of transcriptional sequencing.