Circular RNA transcriptome analysis responses to heat stress in the hypothalamus of sows

Circular RNAs (circRNAs), as miRNA sponges, have been found to participate in transcriptional control and many important biological processes. Heat stress (HS) severely affects feed intake and milk production of sows. However, the expression and function of circRNAs in the hypothalamus of sows and whether they are involved in the adaptation to HS have not been explored. In this study, RNA sequencing and functional analysis were performed to explore the expression and function of circRNAs in the hypothalamus of heat-stressed sows. Toally, 38,143 circRNAs were identified from the hypothalamus of heat-stressed sows, among which 307 circRNAs (170 upregulated and 137 downregulated) were significantly differentially expressed (DE) in the HS groups compared to the control groups. Their host genes are involved in the cellular component organization or biogenesis, metabolic process, and cellular metabolic process, the MAPK signalling pathway and the TGF-β signalling pathway. And a total of 307 DE circRNAs were found to act as sponges for 457 miRNAs. This research explored the expression profiles of circRNAs in the hypothalamus of heat-stressed sows, which will provide basic data for further investigation of the biological function and the regulatory role of circRNAs in the heat-stressed sows.