Multi-Species Transcriptomics of the Mammalian Stomach Reveals Conserved Programs and Ruminant Chamber Specialization
TL;DR
The findings indicate that the mammalian stomach shares conserved molecular programs while also exhibiting species- and chamber-associated differences, providing useful information for understanding mammalian digestive diversity and ruminant stomach specialization.
Abstract
Simple Summary This study compared gene expression patterns in stomach tissues from 11 mammalian species. We identified a group of genes that were consistently expressed across species and mainly involved in basic cellular functions. In contrast, many genes showed different expression patterns among species, reflecting the diversity of mammalian stomach biology. Ruminants also showed a distinct set of genes related to epithelial function, ion transport, defense, and metabolism. We further compared the four stomach chambers of sheep, goats, cattle, and deer. The rumen, reticulum, and omasum constitute the forestomach and showed relatively similar gene-expression patterns, whereas the abomasum, the glandular true stomach, was clearly distinct and was mainly associated with secretion and digestion. These findings indicate that the mammalian stomach shares conserved molecular programs while also exhibiting species- and chamber-associated differences, providing useful information for understanding mammalian digestive diversity and ruminant stomach specialization.