Proteomic Analysis of Protein Ubiquitination Events in Dairy Goats with Fatty Liver

Fatty liver is a major metabolic disease in periparturient dairy goats. Protein ubiquitination, a type of dynamic and multifaceted post-translational modification, plays an important role in metabolism by regulating the stability and function of target proteins. However, the hepatic protein ubiquiti...

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Main Authors: Yuli Zhu, Zhenhua Liu, Yuming Zhang, Yao Meng, Xunuo Song, Jinyu Li, Yue Zhang, Junkang Zhao, Liyin Du, Qinghua Deng
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Animals
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/14/2010
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author Yuli Zhu
Zhenhua Liu
Yuming Zhang
Yao Meng
Xunuo Song
Jinyu Li
Yue Zhang
Junkang Zhao
Liyin Du
Qinghua Deng
author_facet Yuli Zhu
Zhenhua Liu
Yuming Zhang
Yao Meng
Xunuo Song
Jinyu Li
Yue Zhang
Junkang Zhao
Liyin Du
Qinghua Deng
author_sort Yuli Zhu
collection DOAJ
description Fatty liver is a major metabolic disease in periparturient dairy goats. Protein ubiquitination, a type of dynamic and multifaceted post-translational modification, plays an important role in metabolism by regulating the stability and function of target proteins. However, the hepatic protein ubiquitination profile in dairy goats with fatty liver is yet to be elucidated. In this study, we collected liver and blood samples from healthy dairy goats (Con, <i>n</i> = 3) and dairy goats with fatty liver (FL, <i>n</i> = 3). Then, we analyzed the overall ubiquitination of hepatic proteins in dairy goats with fatty liver through quantitative ubiquitin label-free proteomics and bioinformatics. Proteins showing significantly altered levels of ubiquitination were identified via bioinformatics, and related regulatory pathways were screened. The results showed that the blood levels of beta-hydroxybutyric acid and non-esterified fatty acids were significantly upregulated in dairy goats with fatty liver, and a total of 238 ubiquitination sites across 921 proteins were found to be differentially altered in the fatty liver group. Among them, ubiquitination was upregulated at 351 sites across 93 proteins and downregulated at 570 sites across 145 proteins. In addition, GO and KEGG pathway analysis revealed that the differentially ubiquitinated proteins were enriched in pathways regulating lipid metabolism, such as the PPAR signaling pathway, fatty acid degradation, and peroxisome activity. Notably, by observing the overlap among these three sub-networks, we found that proteins with downregulated ubiquitination—such as ACSL1, ACSL5, EHHADH, and ACAA1—were transcriptionally upregulated in dairy goats with fatty liver. This study reveals the key ubiquitinated proteins in dairy goats with fatty liver and provides a more comprehensive understanding of the pathogenesis of fatty liver in dairy goats.
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spelling doaj-art-41f620d717bb4b81b784aeb69eb171be2025-08-20T03:35:27ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152025-07-011514201010.3390/ani15142010Proteomic Analysis of Protein Ubiquitination Events in Dairy Goats with Fatty LiverYuli Zhu0Zhenhua Liu1Yuming Zhang2Yao Meng3Xunuo Song4Jinyu Li5Yue Zhang6Junkang Zhao7Liyin Du8Qinghua Deng9College of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaCollege of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao 028000, ChinaFatty liver is a major metabolic disease in periparturient dairy goats. Protein ubiquitination, a type of dynamic and multifaceted post-translational modification, plays an important role in metabolism by regulating the stability and function of target proteins. However, the hepatic protein ubiquitination profile in dairy goats with fatty liver is yet to be elucidated. In this study, we collected liver and blood samples from healthy dairy goats (Con, <i>n</i> = 3) and dairy goats with fatty liver (FL, <i>n</i> = 3). Then, we analyzed the overall ubiquitination of hepatic proteins in dairy goats with fatty liver through quantitative ubiquitin label-free proteomics and bioinformatics. Proteins showing significantly altered levels of ubiquitination were identified via bioinformatics, and related regulatory pathways were screened. The results showed that the blood levels of beta-hydroxybutyric acid and non-esterified fatty acids were significantly upregulated in dairy goats with fatty liver, and a total of 238 ubiquitination sites across 921 proteins were found to be differentially altered in the fatty liver group. Among them, ubiquitination was upregulated at 351 sites across 93 proteins and downregulated at 570 sites across 145 proteins. In addition, GO and KEGG pathway analysis revealed that the differentially ubiquitinated proteins were enriched in pathways regulating lipid metabolism, such as the PPAR signaling pathway, fatty acid degradation, and peroxisome activity. Notably, by observing the overlap among these three sub-networks, we found that proteins with downregulated ubiquitination—such as ACSL1, ACSL5, EHHADH, and ACAA1—were transcriptionally upregulated in dairy goats with fatty liver. This study reveals the key ubiquitinated proteins in dairy goats with fatty liver and provides a more comprehensive understanding of the pathogenesis of fatty liver in dairy goats.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/14/2010fatty liverdairy goatproteomicsubiquitination
spellingShingle Yuli Zhu
Zhenhua Liu
Yuming Zhang
Yao Meng
Xunuo Song
Jinyu Li
Yue Zhang
Junkang Zhao
Liyin Du
Qinghua Deng
Proteomic Analysis of Protein Ubiquitination Events in Dairy Goats with Fatty Liver
Animals
fatty liver
dairy goat
proteomics
ubiquitination
title Proteomic Analysis of Protein Ubiquitination Events in Dairy Goats with Fatty Liver
title_full Proteomic Analysis of Protein Ubiquitination Events in Dairy Goats with Fatty Liver
title_fullStr Proteomic Analysis of Protein Ubiquitination Events in Dairy Goats with Fatty Liver
title_full_unstemmed Proteomic Analysis of Protein Ubiquitination Events in Dairy Goats with Fatty Liver
title_short Proteomic Analysis of Protein Ubiquitination Events in Dairy Goats with Fatty Liver
title_sort proteomic analysis of protein ubiquitination events in dairy goats with fatty liver
topic fatty liver
dairy goat
proteomics
ubiquitination
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/14/2010
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