# Effect of strontium on transcription factors identified by transcriptome analyses of bovine ruminal epithelial cells

## TL;DR

This study explores how strontium affects transcription factors in bovine ruminal epithelial cells using transcriptome analysis.

## Contribution

The study identifies specific transcription factors influenced by strontium, offering new insights into its biological function in ruminants.

## Key findings

- 1405 transcription factors were identified and classified into 64 families.
- 174 transcription factors were upregulated and 52 downregulated by strontium treatment.
- Key transcription factors like SMAD2 and PPARG are potential targets for strontium's effects on cell processes.

## Abstract

Strontium (Sr) has similar physicochemical properties as calcium (Ca) and is often used to evaluate the absorption of this mineral. Because the major route of Ca absorption in the bovine occurs in the rumen, it is essential to understand whether Sr impacts the ruminal epithelial cells and to what extent.

In the present study, RNA sequencing and assembled transcriptome assembly were used to identify transcription factors (TFs), screening and bioinformatics analysis in bovine ruminal epithelial cells treated with Sr. A total of 1405 TFs were identified and classified into 64 families based on an alignment of conserved domains. A total of 174 differently expressed TFs (DE-TFs) were increased and 52 DE-TFs were decreased; the biological process-epithelial cell differentiation was inhibited according to the GSEA-GO analysis of TFs; The GO analysis of DE-TFs was enriched in the DNA binding. Protein-protein interaction network (PPI) found 12 hubs, including SMAD4, SMAD2, SMAD3, SP1, GATA2, NR3C1, PPARG, FOXO1, MEF2A, NCOA2, LEF1, and ETS1, which verified genes expression levels by real-time PCR.

In this study, SMAD2, PPARG, LEF1, ETS1, GATA2, MEF2A, and NCOA2 are potential candidates that could be targeted by Sr to mediate cell proliferation and differentiation, as well as lipid metabolism. Hence, these results enhance the comprehension of Sr in the regulation of transcription factors and provide new insight into the study of Sr biological function in ruminant animals.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12917-024-03929-9.