Comparative transcriptomic analyses of brain-liver-muscle in channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) with differential growth rate

Growth is an important economically trait for aquatic animals. The popularity of farmed channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) in China has recently surged, prompting a need for research into the genetic mechanisms that drive growth and development to expedite the selection of fast-growing variants. In this study, the brain, liver and muscle transcriptomes of channel catfish between fast-growing and slow-growing groups were analyzed using RNA-Seq. Totally, 63, 110 and 86 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were from brain, liver and muscle tissues. DEGs are primarily involved in growth, development, metabolism and immunity, which are related to the growth regulation of channel catfish, such as growth hormone receptor b (ghrb), fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 (fgfr4), bone morphogenetic protein 1a (bmp1a), insulin-like growth factor 2a (igf2a), collagen, type I, alpha 1a (col1a1a), acyl-CoA synthetase long chain family member 2 (acsl2) and caveolin 1 (cav1). This study advances our knowledge of the genetic mechanisms accounting for differences in growth rate and offers crucial gene resources for future growth-related molecular breeding programs in channel catfish.