In order to explore the main regulatory genes and related pathways of growth traits, transcriptome sequencing was first performed on the brain, liver, and muscle tissues of 3-month-old M. armatus with different growth rates. By comparative transcriptome analysis of fast-growing and slow-growing groups of M. armatus, a total of 2887 DEGs were screened, of which 59 up-regulated genes and 105 down-regulated genes were detected in the brain, 146 up-regulated genes and 202 down-regulated genes were detected in the liver, and 529 up-regulated genes and 1846 down-regulated genes were detected in muscle, including insulin-like growth factor binding protein 1a (IGFBP1A), insulin-like growth factor binding protein 1b (IGFBP1B), myosin, light chain 1 (MYL1), and myoglobin (MB). Through Gene Ontology (GO) and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis, we identified a total of 288 significantly enriched GO entries and 68 significantly enriched KEGG pathways related to growth, such as skeletal muscle tissue development, insulin-like growth factor binding, and the mitotic cell cycle. These key genes and signaling pathways may play a key role in regulating the growth of M. armatus. Digging into the regulatory mechanisms of these key genes will provide a theoretical basis for further exploration of the molecular mechanisms related to the growth and development of M. armatus, and help to breed new varieties of M. armatus with rapid growth.
Keywords: Mastacembelus armatus; differentially expressed genes; growth traits; transcriptome analysis.