Early life nutrition affects the molecular ontogeny of testicular development in the young bull calf

Enhanced early life nutrition accelerates sexual development in the bull calf through neuroendocrine-signalling mediated via the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis. Our aim was to assess the impact of contrasting feeding regimes in bull calves during the first 12 weeks of life on the testes transcriptome and proteome. Holstein-Friesian bull calves were offered either a high (HI) or moderate (MOD) plane of nutrition, designed to support target growth rates of 1.0 and 0.5 kg/day, respectively. At 12 weeks of age all calves were euthanized, testicular parenchyma sampled, and global transcriptome (miRNAseq and mRNAseq) and proteome analyses undertaken. Bioinformatic analyses revealed 7 differentially expressed (DE) miRNA and 20 DE mRNA. There were no differentially abundant proteins between the two dietary groups. Integration of omics results highlighted a potential role for the cadherin gene, CDH13, in earlier reproductive development. Furthermore, co-regulatory network analysis of the proteomic data revealed CDH13 as a hub protein within a network enriched for processes related to insulin, IGF-1, androgen and Sertoli cell junction signalling pathways as well as cholesterol biosynthesis. Overall, results highlight a potential role for CDH13 in mediating earlier reproductive development as a consequence of enhanced early life nutrition in the bull calf.