Exosomal small non-coding RNA profiling and the role of PIWI-interacting RNA pathway genes in Lumpy skin disease virus-infected bovines

Objective: Lumpy skin disease (LSD) is a reemerging viral disease impacting cattle and buffaloes, posing substantial economic risks. However, the expression profile of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) in LSD virus (LSDV)-infected bovines has yet to be investigated. In this study, we employed small RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) to assess the expression of various ncRNAs in serum-derived exosomes from LSDV-infected bovines. We particularly focused on the bio-functional activity of PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs). Methods: Cattle were infected with a 106.5 TCID50/mL LSDV Vietnam/HaTinh/CX01 (HT10) strain and ncRNAs expression in the serum of infected cattle was analyzed small RNA-seq. Results: We identified 426 significantly differentially expressed (DE) piRNAs in serum-derived exosomes from LSDV-infected bovines compared to control groups, with 80 piRNAs being upregulated and 346 piRNA genes downregulated. Pathway analysis of DE piRNAs revealed their involvement in metabolism, cell signaling, and immune response pathways. Additionally, we identified a total of 35,170 tRNAs, 917 snoRNAs, 1,578 snRNAs, 17 Y-RNAs, five small cytoplasmic RNAs (scRNAs), ten vault RNAs, 248 sRNAs, 1,064 piRNAs, and 1,011 miRNAs (not shown in this study) expressed in serum-derived exosomes from LSDV-infected bovines. Among these, 15,649 DE tRNAs, 476 DE snoRNAs, 861 DE snRNAs, 11 DE Y-RNAs, three DE scRNAs, three DE vault RNAs, and 134 DE sRNAs were identified when compared to the control group. Conclusion: Our comprehensive analysis of small RNA-seq data revealed numerous DE ncRNAs in serum-derived exosomes from LSDV-infected bovines compared to controls. We propose that further elucidation and validation of the functions of these ncRNAs may be beneficial for the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of LSDV in bovines.